Delhi govt launches audit into 'irregularities' in Delhi Waqf Board

NEW DELHI: The AAP government has launched a special audit into alleged irregularities by former Delhi Waqf Board chairman Amanatullah Khan during his tenure, officials said.

A four-member team is currently auditing records on Khan's regime from March 2016 to March 2020, they said.

"The special audit is concerned to the irregularities committed by Amanatullah Khan in the capacity of the chairman of Delhi Waqf Board, with effect from March 2016 to March 2020," according to a letter from the office of principal secretary (revenue) to the chief executive officer of Delhi Waqf Board written last month.

Khan, the AAP MLA from Okhla, confirmed the development but refused to comment.

Khan has been unanimously elected as a member of Waqf Board but his election is yet to be notified by the government.

He was chairman of Delhi Waqf Board before assembly elections earlier this year when his term as a member of the Board expired.

  The letter from the office of principal secretary (revenue) directed Delhi Waqf Board to provide "all concerned auditable records and information as per scope and period of audit," to the audit team.

"The team has started work and it is being provided all the help and information," said a senior Delhi government official.

With his election as a member of the Delhi Waqf Board, Khan is likely to return as chairman of the panel for the third time in a row despite the fresh trouble for him in the form of the special audit.

Khan previously served as chairman of the Board for around six months in 2016 before resigning in May, and again from September 2018 to March 2020.

A CBI enquiry is already pending against Khan in connection with the appointments made by him in the Waqf Board during his earlier tenure in 2016.

The Delhi government's Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) registered a case against Khan for alleged misuse of funds before the assembly polls this year.