KARNATAKA Chief Minister Siddaramaiah directed officials on Saturday to immediately retract all notices sent to farmers regarding Waqf land. This decision followed a high-level meeting with senior officials from the Revenue Department, Minority Welfare Department, and the Karnataka Board of Waqfs. A statement from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said, “Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has strictly instructed officials to withdraw all notices concerning Waqf land, ensuring farmers face no disturbance.” Siddaramaiah expressed dissatisfaction with recent actions by certain officials and noted that the JD(S) and BJP might be using the Waqf issue for political gain, potentially disturbing peace in the State. He appealed to the public to ignore any misinformation and emphasised handling the matter sensitively.

 

All notices on land records related to Waqf properties must be retracted immediately, and officials were warned not to harass farmers regarding lands in their possession. Siddaramaiah also ordered that unauthorised changes to land records (Pahani or RTC) should be nullified if done without proper notice or legal procedure. Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil, Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, and senior government officials attended the meeting. Waqf Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, in Vijayapura, reassured the public that all notices issued under the Waqf Act would be withdrawn, as he had previously informed people on Friday. Earlier, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara stated that all district deputy commissioners have been instructed not to serve any notices to farmers under the Waqf Act.