Hyderabad: The Congress government was left red-faced on Monday, October 6, after the Indian Army stopped the works on the 2500 square yards of land allocated for a graveyard located behind a mosque in Hyderabad.
It is reported that the state government had allocated 2,500 square yards of land from a total of 1 acre and 5 guntas belonging to Gairabaad Masjid located in Shaikpet. The announcement was made on Sunday by the advisor to the government for minority affairs and chairman of the Telangana State Wakf Board, Azmathullah Hussain.
However, on Monday, when the Telangana Minorities Residential Educational Institutions Society (TMREIS) chairman Faheem Qureshi and Karwan MLA Kauser Mohiuddin visited the site, army authorities from the Golconda base arrived at the location and began cordoning it off, claiming it was defence land.
Videos of the incident quickly circulated on social media.
Hussaini attempted to downplay the issue, stating that the army officials had visited the spot only because the land allotted for the burial ground lies adjacent to defence land.
“We are not encroaching on army or defence property. As per official records, 1 acre and 5 guntas of land belong to the TS Wakf Board. Our officials will hold discussions with the army authorities to resolve the issue,” he said.
Meanwhile, Congress minority leaders announced that the government had allocated 7,500 square yards of land at Erragadda for a Muslim graveyard. They claimed the land had been under encroachment for over three decades before being reclaimed by the government.
