Sale of endowed land

Question

Question: About forty years ago a man endowed some land as a waqf for a religious school; after that, a madrasa building was also constructed on this land. Five or seven years after the endowment, in some calamity, this madrasa was completely destroyed, on account of which the mutawalli (trustee) of the madrasa sold this land and building, and the waqif (endower) bought the land.

Answer

Land that has once been validly endowed as a waqf may not be bought or sold. Therefore he should not build his own private house there; rather, he should take this land on rent and build the house: the land will remain the madrasa’s and the house will remain this man’s, and he should keep paying the rent for the land to the madrasa.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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