In a significant development, Ahmedabad Police have arrested five individuals linked to a Rs100 crore Waqf property scam that involved the fraudulent collection of rent and illegal construction on religious trust land in the Jamalpur area of the city.
The accused, Salim Khan Pathan, Mohammad Yasar Sheikh, Mehmud Khan Pathan, Faiz Mohammad Jobdar, and Shahid Ahmed Sheikh, are accused of posing as trustees of the Kanch Ni Masjid (Glass Mosque) and Shah Bada Kasam Trust, without any legitimate authorization from the Gujarat Waqf Board.
Authorities discovered that the accused group had been illegally collecting rent from up to 200 houses, 15 residential properties, and 25-30 commercial shops, in addition to operating two unauthorized six-story buildings. The tenants were charged between Rs5,000 and Rs10,000 per month. The accused also allegedly embezzled ₹50,000 per month from the trust’s donation boxes.
The investigation revealed that Salim Khan, who has a criminal record including charges for murder and rioting, submitted a forged affidavit to the Waqf Board in July 2024, claiming to be a trustee. This fraudulent action allowed the group to operate the scam for nearly two decades without detection.
The probe was triggered by a complaint filed at Gaekwad Haveli Police Station. Investigators found that land allocated to the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation for an Urdu school was misused. The school building, which was damaged in the 2001 earthquake and demolished in 2009, was never rebuilt. Instead, the accused constructed 10 shops, including an office for Salim Khan’s Sodagar Construction, and began renting them out illegally.
Confirming the arrests, Zone 3 DCP Bharat Rathod stated that the investigation is ongoing to uncover the full extent of the fraud and to identify any additional individuals involved in the large-scale property misappropriation.
