A controversy has erupted in Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi after the state Waqf Board claimed ownership of the 115-year-old Udai Pratap College. The claim, originally made in 2018, has resurfaced amid the ongoing debate on the Waqf Amendment Bill.

The Uttar Pradesh Central Sunni Waqf Board has asserted that the college land, spanning over 100 acres, is Waqf property linked to a historical mosque within the campus. However, the college administration has strongly refuted this, saying that the land belongs to a charitable endowment and cannot be transferred or sold.

In December 2018, the Waqf Board sent a notice to the college, claiming that the Choti Masjid and the associated property within the college were endowed to Waqf by the Nawab of Tonk, and therefore should come under the board’s control.

Responding to the notice at the time, the college authorities stated that Udai Pratap College was established in 1909 under the Charitable Endowment Act, and rejected the Waqf Board's claims. The college currently has over 17,000 students.

According to the college management, no further move was taken by the board for years after their reply. However, in 2022, there was an attempt by the Waqf Board to carry out construction at the mosque, which was halted by the police following a complaint from the college, Udai Pratap College Principal DK Singh said.

The principal also alleged that the electricity supply to the shrine was cut off because the power being used there was "illegally stolen" from the college.

The initial notice was sent by Wasim Ahmed Khan, a Varanasi resident who died in 2022. While there had been no renewed efforts by the Waqf Board, the matter has once again come to light in view of the upcoming Waqf Amendment Bill, set to be presented in the Lok Sabha.

Source: India Today