Holding

Imams are entitled to reasonable remuneration, and the Wakf Boards must ensure payment as per a scheme framed under Section 15 of the Wakf Act, 1954.

Summary

The All India Imam Organisation filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking basic wages for imams serving in mosques, alleging exploitation and a disparity between their duties and remuneration. The Union of India and various State Wakf Boards contended that imams are appointed by mutawallis or local communities, perform voluntary religious service, and that the Boards lack the authority and financial capacity to pay them. The Supreme Court held that under Section 15 of the Wakf Act, 1954 the Wakf Board has supervisory, administrative and financial responsibilities, including ensuring proper maintenance of religious services, and that the right to life under Article 21 encompasses the right to live with human dignity, which includes reasonable remuneration. Financial difficulties of the Boards cannot override fundamental rights. Consequently, the Court directed the Union and the Central Wakf Board to prepare a scheme within six months for payment of wages to imams, using the Punjab‑Haryana pay scales as a guideline, with provisions for different categories of mosques. The order became effective on 1 December 1993, and the petition was allowed.

Issues considered

Whether imams serving in mosques are employees of the Wakf Boards entitled to wages under the Wakf Act, 1954.
Whether the right to life, liberty and dignity under Article 21 (and Articles 14, 23) obliges the State to provide remuneration to imams.
Whether financial constraints of the Wakf Boards can defeat the fundamental rights of imams.
Whether Section 15 of the Wakf Act imposes a duty on the Board to ensure payment of remuneration to imams.

Legislation cited

Wakf Act, 1954s. 15, s. 36

Subjects

Wakf ActImam remunerationFundamental rightsArticle 21EmploymentReligious institutionsSchemeSupreme Court of India

Judgment

A ALL INDIA IMAM ORGANISATION AND ORS.

v.

UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.

[K.RAMASW AMY AND R.M. SABAi, JJ .]
B
MAY 13,1993
Wakf Act 1954: Ss 15, 36-Payment ofwages to Imams in mosques-Held,
it is the responsibility of the Wakf Board-Directions to Union of India and the
Central Wakf Board to prepare a scheme within six months for different types of
c mosques-Constitution of India, Articles 21, 14 and 23. ..-

A petition was fded in this court by Imams for enforcing their fundamen-
tal right against exploitation by WakfBoards. Their claim was based on the
glaring disparity between the nature of work and the amount of remunera-
tion. The petitioners sought a direction to the Central and State Wakf Boards
D to pay them basic wages. A higher pay scale was claimed for degree holders.

The Union oflndia and various State WakfBoards disputed the manner
of their appointment, their right to receive any payment, and absence of any
relationship of master and servant. It was variously con~nded that they were
appointed by Mutwallis, or in some cases by the people of the locality where
E
th~ mosques were situated, and not by the Wakf Boards;. that under Islamic
religious practice it is voluntary service and there is no entidement to
emoluments; that a certificate from a registered institution is not a necessary
requirement for leading in prayer. It was further contended that the Wakf
Boards faced financial difficulties.
F
The Punjab Wakf Board stated that Imams of mosques in Punjab,
Haryana and Himachal Pradesh were paid on the basis of their qualification.
A pay scale was indicated, and the Imams were paid regularly and treated as
regular employees.
G
Allowing the petition, this Court,

HELD: (1) By Section 15 of the Wakf Act, the WakfBoard is ".ested not
only with supervisory and administrative powers over the Wakfs but even the
fin~ncial power vests. in it. One of the primary duties is to ensure that the
H income from the Wakf is spent on carrying out the purposes for which the
742
IMAM ORGANISATION v. U,0.1. 743

Wakf was created. Mosques are Wakfs and are required to be registered A
under the Act. over which the Board exercises control. Purpose of their
creation is community worship. The principal functionary to undertake it is
the Imam. It is the responsibility of the Wakf Board to ensure proper
maintenance of religious service in a mosque. To say, therefore, that the
Board has no control over the mosque or Imam is not correct. (747-G-H, 748- B
A) .

(2) In a series of decisions rendered by this Court ii has been held that
right to life enshrined in Article 21 means right to live with human dignity. It
is too late in the day to urge that since Imams perform religious duties, they
are not entitled to emoluments. (748-E) C

(3) Financial difficulties of the institution cannot be above fundamental
right of a citizen. If the Boards have been entrusted with the responsibility of
supervising and administering the Wakf then, it is their duty to harness
resources to pay those persons who perform the most important duty namely D
of leading community prayer in a mosque, the very purpose for which it is
created. (748-H)

(4) The Union of India and the Central Wakf Board are to prepare a
scheme within a period of six months in respect ofdifferent types of mosques:
(749~.S)
E

The scheme shall take guidance from the scale of pay prevalent in the
State Punjab and Haryana. (749-D)

Mosques under control of the government will not be governed by F
this order except if their Imams are not paid any remuneration and
have no independent means of income. The Government may then
fax their emoluments on the basis as the Central WakfBoard may do
for other mosques. (749-C)

G
, The State Boards shall ascertain the income of each mosque and the number
and nature of Imams required-full time or part time-and their. payment is

-- directed. (749-E)

The scheme shaH take account of mosques which are small, or in
the rural area, or which have no source of income and find H
744 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1993) 3 S.C.R.

A ways to raise income. (749-G)

The order for payment to Imams shall come into operation from 1 December
1993. Every State Board shall implement the scheme. (749-H, 750-A)

B ORIGINAL JURISDICTION.: Writ Petition (c) No. 715of1990.

Under Article 32 of the Constitution of India.

GobindaMukhoty, R.K. Jain, YusufH. Machhale, Ms. K. Amreswari, (N.P)
R.N. Sachthey, N.N. Goswamy, Ashwani kumar, Mukesh K.Giri, A.K. Sharma,
c B.K. Prasad, (N.P) Ms. Anil Katiyar, Ms. Niranjana Singh, S. Wasim A. Qadri,
B .K. Prasad. Nafis Ahmad Siddiqui, As gar Ali Khan, A.S. Bhasme, E.M.S. Anam,
Sakil Ahmed Syed, Anil K. Jha, Raj Kumar Mehta, S.K. Agnihotri, B.R. Jad, Anip
Sachthey, Syed Ali Ahmed, Syed Tanweer Ahmad, Mohan Pandey, M. Veerappa,
K.H. Nobin Singh S.K. Mehta, Dhruv Mehta, Aman Vachher, P.K. Manohar, B.B.
D Singh, Aruneshwar Gupta and R.Mohan for the appearing parties.

The Judgment of the Court was delivered by

R.M. SA HAI, J. Imams, 'incharge of religious activities of the mosque'(!)
E have approached this court by way of this, representative, petition under Article
32 of the Constitution for enforcement of fundamental right against their exploi-
tation by W akfBoards. Relief sought is direction toCentral and State W akfBoards
to treat the petitioner as employees of the Board and to pay them basic wages to
enable them to survive. Basis of claim is glaring disparity between the nature of
work and amount of remuneration. Higher pay scale is claimed for degree holders.
F
Imams perform the duty of offering prayer (Namaz) for congregation in ...,.
mosques. 'Essentially the m?sque is a centre of community worship where
Muslims perform ritual prayers and where historically they have also gathered for
political, social and cultural functions'. (2) The functions of the mosque is
G summarised by the 13th Century jurist lbn Taymiyah 'as a place of gathering
where prayer was celebrated and when public affairs were conducted'. (3) 'All.
mosques are where Muslim men on an equalitarian basis rich or poor, noble or
humble, stand in rows to perform theirprayersbehindtheimam(4)1mamsareexpected
to look after the cleanliness of nXlsque, call azans from the balcony of the minarets to the --
whole religious meetings and propagate the Islamic faith. They are expected to be
H \
IMAM ORGANISATION 1•. U.0.1. [SAHA!, J] 745

well versed in the Shariat, the holy Quran, the Hadiths, ethics, philosophy, social, A
economic and religious aspects. 'Imam or prayer leader is the most important
appointee. In the early days the ruler himself filled this role; he was leader (imam)
of the government of war, and of the common salat ("ritual prayer"). Under th~
Abbasids, when the caliph no longer conducted prayers on a regular basis, a paid
imam was appointed. While any prominent or learned Muslim can have the honor
of leading prayers, each mosque specifically appoints a man well versed in B
theological matters to act as its imam. He is in charge of the religious activities of
the mosque, and it is his duty to conduct prayers five times a day in front of
Mihrab '. (5) On nature of the duties performed by the imams there is no dispute.
But both the Union of India and various State Wakf Boards of different States
which have put in appearance in response to the notice issued by this Court have c
seriously disputed the manner of their appointment, right to receive any payment
and absence of any relationship of master and servant. It is stated that the imams
or muazzins are appointed by the Mutwallis. According to them the WakfBoards
have nothing to do either with their· appointment or working. It is claimed that
under Islamic religious practice they are not entitled to any emoluments as a matter
of right as the Islamic law ordains the imams to offer voluntary service. They are D
said to be paid some money out of the donations received in mosques or by the
Mutwallis of the Boards. Their job is stated to be honorary and not paid. Nature
of duty under Islamic Shariat is stated to lead prayers which is performed
voluntarily by any suitable Muslim without any monetary benefit. Some of the
affidavits claim that they are appointed by people of the locality. The. Union E
Government has specifically stated that the Islam does not recognise the concept
of priesthood as in other religions and the selection ofimams is the sole prerogative
of the members of the local commu~ity or the managing committee, if any, of the
mosque. According to Karnataka Wakf Board Imamate in the mosque is not
considered to be employment. The allegation of the. petitioners that due to meagre
payment they are humiliated or insulted in the society, is denied and it is claimed F
that they are respectable persons who carry on the duty of Imamate as a part of
rel!gious activity and not for earning bread and butter. The Delhi Wakf Board
pointed out that the honorarium is paid to an imam as a consideration for his five
time presence in the mosque regularly and punctually. The Board has denied any
right to exercise an authority over the mosque where imams and muazzins are G
appointed by the mutwallis or by the managing committees. It is stated that holding
of a certificate from a registered institution to enable a person to lead the prayer
is not necessary as the only requirement for being an imam under the Shariat is to

(I} to (5) The Encyclopedia of Religion Vol.I 0 p-121-122 H
746 SUPREME COURT REPORTS LJ99313 S.C.R.

A have a thorough knowledge of the hely Quaran and the rites, rules and
obligations required for offering prayers according to the principles laid down by
the Kuran and Sunnah. The affidavit filed on behalf ofW akf Board has pointed out
that mosque can be categorised in five categories, one, which are under direct
control or management of the Government such as Mecca Masjid or the mosque
situated in public garden which are not governed or regulated by the Muslim Wakf
B Board; second, mosques which are under the direct management of Wakf Board;
third, mosques which are under the control of mutwallis under various Wakfs
according to the wishes of the Wakf as the creator of the Wakf; t:ourth, mosqu.es
which are not registered with the Wakf Board and are managed by local inhabitants
and are under the management of the public who offer prayers regularly in a
particular mosque; and fifth, mosques which are not managed by mutwallis or the
Muslims of the locality. It is claimed that imams of fourth and fifth category are
not regular and any Muslim can lead the prayers, whereas undephe third category
mosques are having regular imams. Financial difficulty of the WakfBoard to meet
the demand has also been pointed out. The Pondicherry Wakf Board has pointed
that there is not even one employee except a peon working therein and, therefore,
D it is not possible to meet the demand of the imam. It is also claimed that the Board
has no control over the pesh-imams as they are considered to be well dignified
personality of the society and they are given due respect by the Muslim community
as a whole. In the counter-affidavit filed by the Punjab Wakf Board it has been
stated that imams of mosques in Punjab were being paid on basis of their
E qualification. Imams Nazara (Mubtali grade) are in the scale of Rs. 380-20-580-
25-830-30-980, whereas Imams Hafiz (Wasti grade) arc paid Rs. 445-20-645-25-
895-30-1045, and Imam Alim (Muntali grade) are paid Rs. 520-20-720-25-970-
30-1120. They are also paid Rs.30 per month medical allowance and muazzins are
paid Rs. 310 per month. These scales were revised in 1992. According to them
imams of all the mosques in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh which come
F under the Punjab Wakf Board are being paid regularly and they are treated as
regular employees. The Sunni Central Wakf Board ofUttar Pradesh filed only a
written submission stating that all the sunni mosques were managed by mutwallis
of the concerned managing committees and not by the Wakf Board.

G The mosque differs from a church or a temple in many respects. ·ceremonies
and service connected with marriages and birth are never performed in mosques.
The rites that are important and integral functions of many churches such as
confessions, penitences and confirmations do not exist in the mosques. (6) Nor any
offerings are made as is common in Hindu temples. 'In Muslims countries
mosques are subsidised by the States, hence no collection of money from the
--
H community is permitted. The Ministry of Wakf (Endowments) appoints the
IMAM ORGANISATION 1•. U.O.I. [SAHA!. J] 747

servant, preachers and readers of the Koran. Mosques in non-Muslim countries are A
subsidised by individuals. They are administered by their founder or by their
special fund. A caretaker is appointed to keep the place clean. The muazzin cells
to prayer five times a day from the minaret. (7) In our country in I954 Wakf Act
was passed by the Parliament for better administration and supervision ofWakfs.
To achieve the objective of the Act Section 9 provides for establishment ofa Wakf B
Board the functions of which are detailed in Section 15. Sub-section (1) ofit reads
as under:

"( l) Subject to any rules that may be made under this Act, the

- (general superintendence of all wakfs in State in relation to all
matters, except those which are expressly required by this Act to be C
dealt with by the Wakf Commissioner, shall ·vest) in _the Board
established for the State; and it shall be the duty of the Board so to
exercise its powers under this Act a<; to ensure that the Wakfs under
its superintendence are properly maintained controlled and admin-
istered and the income thereof is duly applied to the objects and for D
the purposes for the objects and for the purposes for which such
wakfs were created or intended ;

Provided that in exercising its powers under this Act in respect
of any wakf, the Board shall act in conformity with the directions of
the Wakf, the purposes of the wakf and any usage or custom of the E
wakf sanctioned by the Muslim law"'.

Clause (b) of Sub-section (2) obliges the board "to ensure that
the income and other propeny of a wakf are applied to the,{Jbjects
and for the purposes for which that wakfwascreated or intended''. F
The board is vested not only with supervisory and administrative powers
over the wakfs but even the financial power vests in it. One of its primary duties
is to ensure that the income from the wakf is spent on carrying out the purposes for
which wakf was created.
Mosques are wakfs and are required to be registered under the Act over G
which the board exercises control. Purpose of their creation is community
worship. Namaz or Salat is the mandatory practice observed in every mosque.
'(Among the Five Pillars (arkan; sg., rukn) of Islam, it holds the second most
import, position, immediately after the declaration of faith (shahadah)' (8). The

(6) & (7) Encyclopedia, Britannica Vol. 18 P. 883 H
(8) The Encyclopedia of Religion Vol. 13 P. 20-21
748 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [ 1993] 3 S.C.R.

A principal functionary to undertake it is the Imam. The objective and purpose
-
of every mosque being community worship and it being the obligation of board
under the Act to ensure that the objective of the wakf is carried on the Board cannot
escape from its responsibility for proper mainten.ance of religious service in a
mosque. To say, therefore, that the Board has no control over the mosque or Imam
is not correct. Absence of any provision in the Act or the rules providing for
B
appointment of Imam or laying down condition of their service is probably
because they are not considered as employees. At the same time it cannot be
disputed that due to change in social and economic set-up they too need suste-
nance. Nature of their jolr is such that ,they may be required to be present in the

c
mosque nearly for the whole day. There may be some who may perform the duty
as part of their religious observance. Still others may be ordained by the commu-
nity to do so. But there are large number of such persons who have·no other
-
occupation or profession or service for their livelihood except doing duty as Imam.
What should be their fate? Should they be paid any remuneration and if so how
much and by whom? According to the Board they are appointed by the mutwallis
and, therefore, any payment by the board was out of question. Primafacie it is not
D correct as the letter of appointments issued in some states are from the Board. But
assuming that they are appointed by the Mutwallis the Board cannot escape from
its responsibility as the mutwallis too u/s. 36 of the Act are under the supervision
and control of the Board. In series of decisions rendered by this Court it has been
held thatright to life enshrined in Article 21 means right to live with human dignity.
E It is too late in the day, therefore, to claim or urge that since Imams perform
religious duties they are not entitled to any emoluments. Whatever may have been
the ancient concept but it has undergone change and even in Muslim countries
mosques are subsidised and the Imams are paid their remuneration. We are,
therefore, not willing to accept the submission that in our set up or in absence of
any statutory provision in the Wakf Act the imams who look after the religious
F activities of mosques are not entitled to any remuneration. Much was argued on
behalf of Union and the Wakf Boards that their financial position was not such that
they can meet the obligations of paying the imams as they are being paid in the
State of Punjab. It was also urged that the number of mosques is so large that it
would entail heavy expenditure which the boards of different States would not be
able to bear. We do not find any co-relation between the two. Financial difficulties
G
of the institution cannot be above fundamental right ofa citizen. If the boards have
been entrusted with the responsibility of supervision and administering the wakf
then it is their duty to.harness resources to pay those persons who perform the most
important duty namely ofleading community prayer in a mosque the very purpose
for which it is created.
H
IMAM ORGANISATION\'. U.0.1. [SAHA!. J] 749

In the circumstances we allow this petitions and issue following directions A

(i) The Union of India and the Central Wakf Board will prepare a scheme
within a period of six months in respect of different types of mosques some detail
of which has been furnished in the counter affidavit filed by the Delhi Wakf Board. B

(ii) Mosques which are under control of the Government shall not be
governed by this order. But if their imams are not paid any remuneration and they

-
have no independent income. The Government may fix their emoluments on the
basis as the Central Wakf Board may do for other mosques in pursuance of our
order. C

(iii) For other mosques, except those which are not registered with the Board
of their respective States or which are not manned by members oflslamic faith the
scheme shall provide for payment of remuneration to such Imams taking guidance
from the scale of pay prevalent in the State of Punjab and Haryana. D

(iv) The State Board shall ascertain income of each mosque the number and
nature of Imams required by it namely full time or part time.

(v) For the full time Punjab WakfBoard may be treated as a guideline. That E
shall also furnish guideline for payment to part time imam.

(vi) In all those mosques where full time Imams are working they shall be
paid the remuneration determined in pursuance of this order.

(vii) Part time and honorary Imam shall be paid such remuneration and F
allowance as is determined under the scheme.

(viii) The scheme shall also take into account those mosques which are small
or are in the rural area or are such as mentioned in the affidavit of Pondichery Board
and have no source of income and find out ways and mean_s to raise its income. G

(ix) The exercise should be completed and the scheme be enforced within six
mon~hs.

(x) Ourorder for paymentto Imams shall come into operation from 1st Dec.,
H
750 SUPREME COURT REPORTS (1993) 3 S.C.R.

A 1993. In case the scheme it not prepared within the time allowed then it shall
operate retrospectively from 1st December, 1.993. ·

(xi) The scheme framed by the Central Wakf Board shall be implemented
by every State Board.
B
The Writ Petition is decided accordingly. Parties shall bear their own costs.
-
U.R. Petition allowed.

-