In Brief
The Supreme Court held that a civil court lacks jurisdiction to entertain a suit for permanent injunction concerning an admittedly waqf property. Section 83(1) of the Waqf Act, 1995 empowers Waqf Tribunals to determine any dispute relating to waqf or waqf property, regardless of admission. The Court rejected the distinction between disputed and admitted waqf properties as inconsistent with the statute's express language. Since the property was admitted to be waqf and questions arose about the nature of the waqf and beneficiary status, the Tribunal was the proper forum. The civil court's order rejecting the plaint was upheld and the case remitted to the Waqf Tribunal.
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