The JPC, chaired by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Jagadambika Pal, was hearing from stakeholders about the proposed legislation to overhaul Waqf property administration.
Published Jan 24, 2025 | 5:16 PM ⚊ Updated Jan 24, 2025 | 7:28 PM
Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the religious head of Kashmir, at the JPC hearing. (X)
Ten Opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) were suspended for the day from the panel after chaos erupted at a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) meeting at Parliament Annexe on Friday, 24 January. The JPC, chaired by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Jagadambika Pal, was hearing from stakeholders about the proposed legislation to overhaul Waqf property administration.
The suspended MPs are Kalyan Banerjee and Nadeem ul Haq (All India Trinamool Congress), Asaduddin Owaisi (All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen), A Raja and M Abdullah (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam), Naseer Hussain, Imran Masood and Mohammad Jawed (Indian National Congress), Mohibullah (Samajwadi Party), and Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena-UBT).
Opposition members protested during the committee meeting, reportedly due to insufficient time provided to review proposed changes to 44 sections of the Waqf Act, 1995. “This is a complete farce…..We were told there will be a meeting on 24th and 25th January. Now, for today’s meeting, the agenda has been changed from clause-by-clause discussion,” Banerjee told ANI after the meeting.
वक्फ JPC बैठक में हंगामा, सभी 10 विपक्षी सांसद दिन दिन भर के लिए निलंबित!
वक्फ समिति बैठक से निलंबित विपक्षी सांसदों में @asadowaisi, @KBanerjee_AITC, @DrMdJawaid1, @dmk_raja, @NasirHussainINC, मोहिबुल्लाह नदवी, @pudugaiabdulla, @AGSawant, @MdNadimulHaque6 और @Imranmasood_Inc… pic.twitter.com/mlKk3wxkmH
— The Muslim Spaces (@TheMuslimSpaces) January 24, 2025
The contentious bills, introduced in August 2024 and sent to the JPC for recommendations, seek to overhaul the administration of Waqf properties – mosques, madrassas, shelter homes and thousands of acres of land, donated by Indian Muslims over centuries – which span 9.4 lakh acres across India with an estimated value of ₹1.2 lakh crore, making them the largest landowners after the Armed Forces and Indian Railways.
Major proposed reforms include restricting Waqf formation to practising Muslims, appointment of non-Muslim chief executive officers and empowering district collectors to resolve property disputes.
In an earlier statement, the Press Information Bureau stated that the legislation “seeks to improve the administration” and “overcome shortcomings, including abuse of power”.
However, the bills have faced consistent opposition since their introduction. Several Muslim groups and opposition parties have termed them politically motivated and an attempt to weaken minority rights.
Kashmir’s religious head Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, who arrived in Delhi specifically for the meeting, marking his first visit since Article 370’s abrogation, similarly opposed the amendments.
“We hope our suggestions would be heard and acted upon and no such step would be taken that would make Muslims feel that they are being disempowered,” Farooq told PTI. “The issue of Waqf is a very serious matter, especially for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, as it is a Muslim-majority state. Many people have concerns regarding this, and we have prepared a detailed memorandum addressing these concerns point by point. We want the government to refrain from interfering in Waqf matters.”
Meanwhile, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey accused the opposition of “trying to strangle the voice of the majority” and announced the 500-page JPC report would be submitted to the Speaker on 29 January. The committee has conducted 34 meetings and consulted over 24 stakeholders, including 20 Waqf boards nationwide.
“It is the thinking of the people belonging to the Opposition, especially Owaisi that we have not heard the complete representation from Jammu & Kashmir and called Mirwaiz Umar Farooq. Only to hear him the JPC chairman postponed the meeting to hold clause by clause discussion. Today, the Opposition’s thoughts and views are exposed,” Dubey further said, according to News18.
“They created a ruckus and misbehaved in front of cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq of Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema, this is against parliamentary democracy.”
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
