Waseem Rizvi – Before initiating Babri dispute settlement

Sharib Jafri

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board chairman Waseem Rizvi, who has hogged the limelight by initiating to resolve the Babri Masjid dispute, not only had a controversial past, but has also been accused of murder.

Rizvi, the two-time Councillor from Kashmiri Colony ward in Saadatganj, Lucknow, was appointed as the Shia Central Waqf Board chairman in 2008 during the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) regime in Uttar Pradesh.

He was earlier considered to be the 'right hand' of Shia Cleric Maulana Kalbe Jawad, but the relations have soured between the two over the years.

It is worth mentioning that Rizvi filed a composition deed in the Supreme Court for the resolution of Babri mosque dispute. He has proposed to construct masjid-e-aman (mosque of peace) in Lucknow and give the disputed land in Ayodhya for the construction of temple of Lord Ram.

The life and journey to the chairmanship of Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board:

Lucknow-born, Waseem Rizvi completed his Intermediate from Play Way School in the state capital.

At the time when Kalbe Jawad was demanding to revoke the ban on Shia Muslim processions, Rizvi met him with the papers of Haji Maseeta Waqf property. He, along with a few others, was looking after the plotting at the property.

After meeting the Shia Cleric, he parted ways with his associates in the plotting deal. His decision brought him very close to Kalbe Jawad and their proximity only increased over the years.

Also Read: Babri Masjid of Ayodhya to be built in Lucknow: Shia Waqf Board

In the year 2000, he tried his hand in Councillor election for the first time from the Kashmiri Colony of Saadatganj region and won with a comprehensive margin. His victory was, however, credited to his closeness with the Shia Cleric. He again won the same election from the same seat in 2005 also.

Later in 2008, during the BSP tenure in the state, Waseem Rizvi was named the Chairman of UP Shia Central Waqf Board.

Now came the time when the relationship between Rizvi and Kalbe Jawad started to turn sour. Within a year as the Chairman of the Shia Waqf Board, Rizvi was replaced by the brother-in-law of Kalbe Jawad, Prof. Kamaluddin Akbar at the post. But he could not hold the post for more than a year (2009-2010) as he lost interest in it.

This led to re-elevation of Waseem Rizvi as the Chairman of the board, but by then, the relations were no more cordial between him and Jawad.

The rivalry took a bitter turn when on Kalbe Jawad's complaint, CBCID registered a case in the Waqf scam and launched the probe against Rizvi. Meanwhile, on Kalbe Jawad's another complaint, the UP Shia Central Waqf Board had been dissolved. Finding no way out, Rizvi moved Supreme Court and finally in 2015, the apex court restored the board.

Since the resumption, Waseem Rizvi has been serving as the Chairman of the UP Shia Central Waqf Board.