A writ petition filed in the Supreme Court challenges the nationwide mandate for digital uploading of waqf properties under Section 3B, alleging that the Centre’s UMEED Portal is structurally defective and cannot meet statutory requirements in Madhya Pradesh.
A writ petition submitted to the Supreme Court, challenging the enforceability of the nationwide digital uploading mandate for waqf properties under Section 3B of the Waqf Act, 1995.
The petition claims that the Centre’s newly introduced UMEED Portal is structurally defective and incapable of meeting statutory requirements, particularly in Madhya Pradesh.
Filed under Article 32, the petition seeks a mandamus against the Ministry of Minority Affairs, arguing that the UMEED Portal, as the sole mechanism established under the UMEED Rules, 2025, is neither technically operational nor legally aligned with the waqf structures in various states.
The petitioner, a Mutawalli from Madhya Pradesh, asserts that the Portal is fundamentally inconsistent with the State’s waqf framework. Most of Madhya Pradesh’s waqf properties are classified as Section 5 Survey/Gazette-notified waqfs, rather than “Waqf by User” properties.
However, Section 5.1 of the UMEED Portal’s user manual does not provide any option for registering Survey/Gazette waqfs, allegedly compelling users to submit an “unlawful and false declaration” to continue.
The petition, submitted through Advocate on Record Vaibhav Choudhary, contends that such coerced misclassification breaches both the statutory obligations and fiduciary responsibilities of a Mutawalli.
The plea elaborates on a series of nationwide technical failures that, according to the petitioner, have significantly hindered the digital initiative.
It includes a 195-page compilation of grievances from the Ministry itself, detailing widespread issues like missing districts and villages, rejection of valid land record formats, difficulties in creating user IDs, login failures, dysfunctional approval workflows, system crashes, and recurring “undefined errors.”
These problems, as claimed, have persisted for the duration of the six-month statutory period.
In Madhya Pradesh, the technical deficiencies are exacerbated by the portal’s rejection of local land record formats, such as large khasra numbers, decimal-based area entries, sheet numbers, and multi-plot records, making compliance “impossible.”
Despite this, failure to upload exposes Mutawallis to penalties under Section 61 of the Waqf Act, which may entail removal, prosecution, and loss of administrative rights.
The petition argues that penal consequences for failing to complete a task made impossible by the State are violations of Articles 14, 21, 25, 26, and 300A of the Constitution.
While Section 3B allows for an extension of the upload deadline until June 2026, the petitioner contends that this extension is futile if the portal itself cannot process lawful entries.
Additionally, the plea notes that key provisions of the Waqf Act relevant to this digital process including Sections 3B, 36, and 61 are already under constitutional challenge before the Supreme Court, rendering strict enforcement premature.
The petitioner requests that the Union Government rectify the UMEED Portal, include an option for Survey/Gazette waqfs, resolve the identified technical issues across states, provide an alternative lawful mechanism for compliance until the portal is operational, and suspend penalties arising from non-compliance due to the system’s own shortcomings.
Earlier, On December 1, the Apex Court declined to extend the six-month deadline for mandatory registration of waqf properties on the UMEED Portal under the Waqf Amendment Act, 2025, directing applicants instead to pursue relief in the Waqf Tribunal.
In related news, on November 3, 2025, the Court agreed to relist for consideration a petition from AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, seeking an extension for mandatory registration of all waqf properties, including those categorized as ‘Waqf by user,’ under the Centre’s UMEED portal.
Previously, during the proceedings, Pasha informed the Bench that while the amended law allowed six months for mandatory registration, five months had already passed since the Supreme Court’s interim order in September, leaving only one month remaining.
Earlier, on September 15, the Apex Court had declined to stay the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025 in its entirety.
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