- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 12TH DAY OF FEBRUARY, 2026 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE B M SHYAM PRASAD WRIT PETITION NO.1426/2025 (GM-WAKF) BETWEEN: 1. BASHEER S/O S H SAHIB AGED ABOUT 40 YEARS NO. 3-70/4, KOLAKE HOUSE SAJJPAMOODA, BANTWAL DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574 231 2. K MAYYADDI S/O HAJABBA AGED ABOUT 40 YEARS NO.3-57, KOLAKE HOUSE SAJJPAMOODA, BANTWAL DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574 231 3. MOHAMMED NIDSAR S/O HASANABBA AGED ABOUT 31 YEARS NO. 3-56/1, NAGRI POST, KOLAKE HOUSE, SAJJPAMOODA BANTWAL, DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574 231 4. ABDUL LATHEEF S/O MOHAMMED BYARI NO. 3-196/1, AGED ABOUT 35 YEARS MANEVARTHE KODI HOUSE MANCHI, BANTWAL TALUK DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574 323 Digitally signed by RAKESH S HARIHAR Location: High Court of Karnataka, Dharwad Bench - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 5. HAMZA C/O P K ABUBAKKAR AGED ABOUT 37 YEARS NO. 3-42/8, BORUGUDDE NAGRI POST, SAJIPAMOODA DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574231 6. SULAIMAN S/O ABDUL RAHIMAN AGED ABOUT 56 YEARS R/AT NO. 3-42/18 BOR GUDDE HOUSE, NAGRI POST SAJJPAMOODA, BANTWAL DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574 231 7. ILYAS M S/O SULAIMAN AGED ABOUT 34 YEARS R/AT NO.4-7/9 PARLADKA HOUSE, ULLALA TALLUKU IRA, DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574323 8. P J ABDUL KAREEM S/O MOHAMMED AGED ABOUT 38 YEARS R/AT NO. 3-42 (1A) BOR GUDDE HOUSE, NAGRI POST SAJIPAMOODA BANTWAL DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574 231 9. ABDUL RAZAK S/O SULAIMAN AGED ABOUT 38 YEARS R/AT NO.3/129 (2) MADUPALLA HOUSE IRA VILLAGE, BANTWAL DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574 323 10. MOHAMMED S/O IBRAHIM BEARY - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 AGED ABOUT 56 YEARS R/AT NO. 2-16 KUKKEJE SITE HOUSE, ULLAL, IRA DAKSHINA KANNADA - 574 323 …PETITIONERS (BY SRI. SRINIVAS V., ADVOCATE) AND: 1. THE KARNATAKA STATE BOARD OF WAKF CUNNINGHAM ROAD BANGALORE - 560 052 REPRESENTED BY ITS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER 2. THE DISTRICT WAQF OFFICE MINORITY WELFARE BUILDING, 2ND FLOOR, OLD KENT ROAD, MANGALORE - 575 001 REPRESENTED BY CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER 3. ELECTION OFFICER MOHIYUDDIN JUMMA MASJID, KUKKAJE, MANCHI POST AND VILLAGE, BANTWAL TALUK, D.K. DISTRICT - 574 321 4. THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER/ ADMINISTRATOR MOHIYUDDIN JUMMA MASJID, KUKKAJE, MANCHI POST AND VILLAGE, BANTWAL TALUK, D.K. DISTRICT - 574 321 … RESPONDENTS (BY SRI.MOHAMMAD NIYAZ S., ADVOCATE FOR R1, R2, R3 AND R4; - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 SRI.N.K.RAMESH, ADVOCATE FOR IMPLEADING APPLICANTS ON IA NO.1/2026) THIS W.P. IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 & 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO A) QUASH THE COMMUNICATION/ENDORSEMENT DATED 06/01/2025 BEARING NO.MJM/03/ELECTION/2024- 25/427 ISSUED BY THE R3 VIDE ANNEXURE-E TO THE WP. B) QUASH THE NOTIFICATION/CALENDAR OF EVENTS DATED 02/01/2025 BEARING NO. MJM/03/ELECTION/2024-25 VIDE ANNEXURE-F TO THE WP. C) DIRECT THE R4 TO PREPARE A FRESH VOTERS LIST INCLUDING THE NAME OF THE PETITIONERS AND OTHER ELIGIBLE MEMBERS AND TO HOLD THE ELECTION. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE B M SHYAM PRASAD ORAL ORDER The petitioners assert that they are members of the Mohiyuddin Jumma Masjid, Kukkaje, Bantwal Taluk, Dakshina Kannada District. The petitioners - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 have called in question the third respondent's Endorsement dated 06.01.2025. The third respondent, in issuing this Endorsement, has informed the petitioners that their request for an inquiry into the deletion of 322 members from the List and re-induction of those members cannot be considered because the final Voters List is already furnished to the Election Officer, who, based on such List, has published the Calendar of Events. 2. This Court, on 25.01.2025, has directed the third respondent [the Election Officer] not to announce the results without permission, and therefore, although the elections are held on 25.01.2025, the results have not been announced. The results are filed into this Court in a sealed cover. The respondents have filed their application for vacating this Court's order and paving the way for the announcement of the results. A set of residents of this village have filed their application to come on - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 record. These applications are in IA.2 of 2025 and IAs.1 and 2 of 2026. 3. Mr. Mohammad Niyaz S, the learned counsel for the respondents, and Sri N.K. Ramesh, the learned counsel for the impleading applicants, submit that this Court must vacate the interim order because though elections have been held a year back, the results have not been announced and that the tenure of those who could be elected, which is for three years, gets reduced. In the light of the afore, the petition and the pending applications are taken up for final disposal. 4. The petitioners' case hinges upon the assertion that 322 members have been excluded from the Provisional List and that the elections have been announced in violation of the prescribed Rules. The respondents [the applicants] deny the same, and they also contend that even if there can be a dispute in these regards, it would qualify as an election dispute - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 which must be resolved in terms of the alternative remedy available. 5. When queried, Sri Mohammad Niyaz S and Mr. N. K. Ramesh invite this Court's attention, first, to the Chief Executive Officer's order dated 10.05.2019 and second, to Rule 48 of the Karnataka Wakf Rules, 2017 [for short the Rules] and the Scheme of Administration published in Form-42 under the Rules. In response, Sri V. Srinivas proposes to rely upon the byelaws as per Annexure-A appended to the writ petition. 6. The Rule 48 of the Rules stipulate that, within six months from the date of the commencement of the Rules, the Scheme of Management must be framed in Form No.42 and duly approved by the Board , and the further stipulation is that the failure in this regard would be a cause for the District Wakf Officer [or the Authorized Officer of - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 the Wakf] to take over the management and supervision of the Wakf institution and the Scheme of Administration approved, lest there be consequences as contemplated under the afore mentioned Rule which provides for resolution of election disputes in Clause-31 in Chapter-VIII. This provision reads as under: i. Any dispute or any other matter relating to Election to Managing Committee shall be made within 30 days from the date of declaration of result before a Waqf Election Tribunal comprising of the Chief Executive Officer, Additional Chief Executive Officer and Chief Law Officer. The Chief Executive Officer will preside over and adjudicate on the Election petition, and the decision of the Waqf Election Tribunal shall be final and conclusive; ii. The petitioner shall file the Election Petition as provided in Rule 88 with suitable modifications alongwith a verifying affidavit and a deposit of Rs. 1000/- towards costs; - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 iii. The Chief Executive Officer shall exercise powers specified under sub-section (2) of Section 71 of the Act while hearing on the Petition; iv. The Chief Executive Officer shall hear and complete the proceedings within two months of its filing; vi. The Chief Executive Officer shall follow the procedure prescribed. 7. This Court observes that every dispute relating to an election to the Managing Committee must be filed with the Wakf Election Tribunal within 30 days from the date of publication of the results, and the proceedings must be completed within two months of the filing. The petitioners rely upon the byelaws that prevailed prior to the Rules, and they cannot be permitted to canvass contrary to the order dated 10.05.2019 which provides for mutatis mutandis applicability of the Scheme of Management in Form No.42. Further, it cannot be gainsaid that the - 10 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:8930 WP No.1426/2025 petitioners have an alternative remedy and this would be efficacious because every aspect relating to the election, including the exclusion of members and non-compliance with the Rules, can be gone into in such proceedings. 8. This Court in exercise of the jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution will not go into the merits of the petitioners' grievance with the alleged exclusion as that would require an examination of facts. Therefore, leaving all questions open to be considered, the petition stands disposed of directing the third respondent to announce the results and calling upon the Registry to make over the sealed cover to the third respondent on a memo with a request in that regard. Consequentially the applications for impleadment as also vacating stand disposed of. Sd/- (B M SHYAM PRASAD) JUDGE NV