Amanatullah Khan unanimously elected as Delhi Waqf Board chairman again

AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan was unanimously elected as the chairman of the reconstituted Delhi Waqf Board on Tuesday, two years after he resigned from the panel amid allegations of corruption.

In a meeting of the board that was reconstituted last week, the five members elected Khan as the next chairman of the body.

"His name was proposed by nominated member Razia Sultana and seconded by another nominated member Naeem Fatima. His election was unanimous," said a government official.

Khan exuded hope that he would have a fruitful second stint as the chairman of the Waqf Board.

"Zero tolerance towards corruption, increasing amount of pensions disbursed by the board and the number of its beneficiaries, raising income, and expediting large number of cases in which the board is a party will be my priorities," he said.

Delhi Waqf Board is a seven-member panel that oversees management of over 2,000 valuable properties including land, buildings, shops and graveyards spread across the city.

The newly constituted board comprised six members including Khan.

The member from MP quota is currently vacant due to unavailability of a suitable Muslim candidate.

The Delhi government's revenue department issued a notification reconstituting the board with the approval of Delhi Revenue Minister Kailash Gahlot last Monday.

Khan had held the post of chairman for nearly six months before resigning from the post in September 2016 amid allegations of irregularities.

Last year, the Okhla MLA was again elected as the member of the board, but the Lieutenant Governor's approval for his appointment was awaited.

The Delhi Waqf Board was dissolved in 2016 amid allegations of corruption, which became a bone of contention between the ruling AAP and the office of the Lt. Governor.

In October 2016, then Lt Governor Najeeb Jung dissolved the Delhi Waqf Board after two of its members resigned alleging corruption and a CBI probe was ordered by him.

In December last year, Lt Governor Anil Baijal had directed the revenue department to probe allegations by Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Vijender Gupta that the Delhi government was trying to reconstitute the Board in "utter violation" of the Waqf Act.