In a major victory for the Gurubasava Virakta Math, 30 acres of land worth crores, illegally listed under the Karnataka Waqf Board, have finally been restored to the Mutt after a relentless struggle spanning more than five decades. As per Sanatan Prabhat, the announcement was made by Ningappa Gurubasavappa Pattanshetty, Secretary of the Gurubasava Virakta Math Seva Samiti.
Of the total land, 28 acres under Survey No. 1020 in Sindagi town, Vijayapura district, had been wrongly recorded in the Revenue Department’s RTC documents as Waqf property. Historically, during the tenure of former pontiff Siddalingaiah Swamiji, Column 11 of the land record was left blank. Shockingly, in 2018–2019, this blank entry was tampered with and changed to “Kabrastan – Waqf Board,” without any legal basis.
Fraudulent alteration of revenue records
Once devotees discovered the unlawful alteration, widespread anger erupted. Residents and followers of the Math began resisting the move through demonstrations and sustained public pressure. The community’s united stand played a crucial role in pushing the matter toward legal scrutiny.
After nearly a year of litigation, the court delivered a decisive judgment: the land has no relation whatsoever to the Waqf Board. The ruling restored full ownership of the property to the Virakta Math, marking the end of a prolonged legal and administrative battle.
Math’s major contribution to rural education
The Sindagi Math is not merely a religious institution; it has been a major force in expanding educational opportunities in northern Karnataka. It operates several schools and colleges, including the Shri Guru Kumareshwar Religious School at Byaggi, which enables thousands of rural students to access quality education and build better futures.
Larger issue of Waqf encroachment nationwide
The victory of Guruvirakta Math in Sindagi is not an isolated incident; it comes at a time when the Karnataka Waqf Board has laid claim to 53 ASI-protected historical monuments across Congress-ruled Karnataka, with reports indicating that 43 of these sites are already encroached. This pattern mirrors numerous cases of temple lands, public properties, and long-standing community assets being quietly pushed into Waqf records without due process.
In such an environment, where encroachments have continued unchecked and often uncontested under the present state administration, the Sindagi judgment stands out as a rare and hard-fought victory. It exposes the scale of systemic overreach and the vulnerability of Hindu religious institutions when political establishments fail to safeguard them.
The court’s order returning the Math’s land after fifty years is more than a legal triumph; it is a symbolic win against an expanding machinery of land appropriation operating under the shield of government neglect. This case reinforces a growing national sentiment: Hindu institutions must remain vigilant, assertive, and united in defending their rightful properties, especially when state mechanisms appear indifferent or complicit.
The struggle at Sindagi may be over, but the larger battle to protect India’s temples, heritage structures, and community lands from unlawful Waqf claims is far from finished.
