Hyderabad: Telangana Government Advisor Mohammed Ali Shabbir urged the Centre on Wednesday to extend the deadline for uploading waqf property data from Telangana onto the Umeed portal. He asked for a six-month to one-year extension, warning that many institutions risk being left out due to technical and logistical issues.
Confusion and delays affecting compliance
Shabbir Ali addressed a press conference in Kamareddy, where he said most mosque committees did not receive timely instructions. “Messages failed to reach many towns and villages. Several institutions are under pressure and fear missing out due to last-minute confusion,” he said.
He explained that frequent server outages on the Umeed portal added to the problem. In response, he coordinated with the Waqf Board and local departments to support data uploads. His team arranged computer access in Kamareddy and brought in waqf inspectors from Hyderabad and Nizamabad to help.
Institutions entering basic data amid panic
“People are anxious whether their mosques will remain registered if uploads are incomplete,” he noted. To mitigate the impact, many institutions began entering only basic details such as mosque names hoping to upload documents later.
Shabbir Ali said historical gaps in waqf documentation made urgent uploads impractical. “Over the decades, many mosque committees failed to collect legal papers from donors or officials. Two days is not enough to fill those gaps,” he said.
CM’s request and parliamentary push
He confirmed that Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking a one-year extension. The Telangana government also shared the request with the Ministry of Minority Affairs and Members of Parliament.
“Different departments issued conflicting guidelines. This further delayed the process,” he said.
Shabbir Ali pointed out that although the portal launched in June, Telangana’s mandal lists appeared only in October after repeated requests. “The lack of digital skills among mutawallis and scattered waqf records require time for verification,” he added.
Need for support to ensure accurate records
He said Revanth Reddy’s letter emphasized the need for precise waqf documentation and flagged the portal’s technical flaws. “We support transparent land records, but institutions need more time,” the chief minister reportedly told the Centre.
Shabbir Ali said India’s legal system allows religious communities to maintain worship spaces with minimal restrictions. “That freedom comes with the duty to maintain proper records. But we need the time to do it right,” he said.
He concluded by urging the Union government to grant more time, saying state institutions were doing everything possible within their limits. “The extension is critical to ensure accuracy, calm fears, and protect every waqf property in Telangana,” he said.