Anointment of Shahi Imam's son illegal, Delhi HC told

The central government and the Wakf Board Thursday told the Delhi High Court that the anointment ceremony of the son of Jama Masjid's Shahi Imam as the Naib Imam (deputy Imam) was "illegal" and has no legal sanctity.

A division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice R.S. Endlaw was told by the Delhi Wakf Board that it has not given any legal sanctity to the anointment of the Imam and will hold a meeting in this regard.

The anointment ceremony is scheduled for Nov 22.

The court was hearing three public interest litigations (PILs) that said the Jama Masjid was a property of the Delhi Wakf Board and Shahi Imam Maulana Syed Ahmed Bukhari as its employee cannot appoint his son as Naib Imam.

The court reserved the order on the PILs.

During the hearing, counsel for the Archaeological Survey of India and the central government told the court that the Jama Masjid was a historical monument and it has to be decided how the rule of primogeniture will apply on the succession of the Imam or chief cleric.

The PIls said Bukhari's decision to anoint his 19-year-old son Shaban Bukhari as the Naib Imam was wrong as there was no provision under the Wakf Act for hereditary appointment of the Imam.

"Despite knowing that the Imam is an employee of the Wakf Board and it's the board which has the right to appoint an Imam, he (Bukhari) has declared his 19-year-old son to be the Naib Imam and is holding a dastar bandi ceremony for the purpose, which is purely anti-Islamic," the pleas said.

Another petition challenging the ceremony was filed in the court by Prince Yakub Habeebuddin Tucy, who claims to be the seventh generation great grandson of Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar.

"The Imam is not hereditary and it is nowhere written in any Islamic literature or the holy book Quran that Shahi Imam is a hereditary post and that only a son of Imam can be the next Imam. Imams of all mosques employed under the Delhi Wakf Board are appointed by it only and are paid salaries," the petition said.

The plea is likely to come up for hearing Friday.

Jama Masjid is India's largest mosque built during the Mughal era.

The three PILs asked the court to declare invalid the appointment of Bukhari as the Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid.

They also alleged that there was "complete anarchy and misuse of power" by the Shahi Imam.

Bukhari recently sparked off a controversy by announcing that he has invited Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for the ceremony of anointing his son as the deputy Imam but did not feel the need to invite Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.