Rajkot: Nine individuals, including a trustee of the Gujarat State Waqf Board, have been detained for allegedly trying to forcibly evict three shopkeepers and take possession of their shops in the Mochi Bazar area, reports The Times of India.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Zone 2, Jagdish Bangarva, said that the group was detained under preventive action late Thursday night. They were taken to Mochi Bazar for a reconstruction of the alleged incident.
Those detained include Farooq Musani (48), a trustee of a mosque in the area, along with Zakir Musani (42), Irfan Solanki (46), Sarfaraz Sheikh (38), Yunus Musani (52), Ameen Chauhan (52), Gaffar Ajani (63), Farid Shikhar (44), and Iqbal Seta (40). The accused face charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including unlawful assembly, criminal trespass, and criminal intimidation.
The incident reportedly occurred on Tuesday when Farooq Musani and others allegedly threw out the goods of three shopkeepers, claiming the shops belonged to the Waqf Board. They cited unpaid taxes and long-standing electricity bills as grounds for the eviction. Musani also presented documents dated December 19, 2024, from the Gujarat State Waqf Board, alleging that the shops were illegally transferred to the shopkeepers’ descendants without permission.
One of the shopkeepers, Virendra Kotecha (72), lodged a formal complaint against Musani and unidentified individuals, leading to the arrests.
Reacting to the incident, Gujarat’s junior home minister, Harsh Sanghavi, assured action against unlawful activities. Posting on social media platform X, he stated, “All shops have reopened, and the accused have been arrested. We remain committed to protecting citizens from harassment.”
The case has brought attention to disputes over properties managed by the Waqf Board, raising concerns about proper documentation and due process in resolving such conflicts.
