Interplay Between Section 85 Bar of Jurisdiction and Specific Statutory Mandates

The bar of Civil Court jurisdiction contained in Section 85 of the Waqf Act, 1995, though broader in reach than Section 6(5) read with Section 7(1), remains strictly co-extensive with and anchored to matters required by or under the Act to be determined by the Waqf Tribunal. Section 85 operates to oust Civil Court jurisdiction in respect of various specific original, appellate, and regulatory matters explicitly entrusted to the Tribunal across different chapters of the Act, such as challenges to Chief Executive Officer recovery orders under Section 33(4), attachment orders under Section 35(1), audit recovery appeals under Section 48(2), collector possession orders under Section 52(4), removal of encroachments under Section 54(3), mutawalli removals under Section 64(4), and scheme challenges under Section 69(3). However, Section 85 does not create an absolute bar against Civil Courts for matters where no statutory provision in the Act requires Tribunal determination. The key to invoking the Section 85 bar lies in identifying a clear, specific statutory mandate directing the matter to the Tribunal; absent such a mandate, the Civil Court retains full adjudicatory authority. (Habib Alladin & Ors. v. Mohammed Ahmed | 2026 INSC 90)