Kerala’s High Court ruled that individuals occupying Waqf land prior to the 2013 amendment of the Waqf Act should not face prosecution under the law’s retrospective application. The decision followed a high-profile case where long-term tenants of Waqf properties, facing eviction orders, challenged the application of Section 52A of the amended Waqf Act, which criminalizes unauthorized possession of Waqf property. The court determined that this section cannot be retroactively enforced on occupants who took possession of these lands before the law came into effect on November 1, 2013. This ruling aligns with Article 20(1) of the Indian Constitution, which prohibits the retroactive application of penal provisions.
The case stemmed from a complaint by the Kerala State Waqf Board against various occupants of Waqf property, asserting that those occupying the land without proper authorization after their leases had expired were in breach of the newly established legal standards. However, counsel for the occupants contended that these leases and arrangements were made decades ago, with one lease dating as far back as 1916. They argued that applying Section 52A retroactively would wrongfully penalize these tenants who had been lawfully managing the property under pre-existing agreements. Senior counsel further asserted that the original intent of Section 52A was to prevent illegal land encroachments going forward, not to criminalize historical arrangements that complied with the law at the time.