Acquisition of Waqf lands by the state authority : A case study of land acquisition in Terengganu

The Land Acquisition Act 1960 has listed out some categories of land that can be acquired for certain purposes by the Government or the State Authority (SA), namely registered alienated land. In this regard, the National Land Code 1965 has allocated the power to place any waqf land under a specific administrative body, the State Islamic Religious Affairs Council (SIRC). The objective of this article is to identify some issues connected with the acquisition of waqf land by the SA. It is also to recommend some improvements to the law in order to ensure that the acquisition of waqf land is in line with Sharia. As a case study, the State of Terengganu is chosen to highlight the issues connected with the acquisition of waqf land by the SA. The study adopts the qualitative approach, where data are collected through library research and the content analysis method. The research findings reveal that most of the remedies awarded in the waqf land were monetary compensation based on market value