Congress MPs KC Venugopal and Hibi Eden have also given notices to oppose the introduction of the Bill in the Lok Sabha.
Published Aug 08, 2024 | 12:50 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 08, 2024 | 12:50 PM
Lok Sabha chamber.
As the Union government is set to introduce the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024, in the Lok Sabha, the INDIA bloc parties including Congress and Samajwadi Party, and Trinamool Congress have expressed their opposition to the bill.
The Bill, which seeks to amend the law governing Waqf boards has proposed far-reaching changes in the present Act, including ensuring the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims in such bodies.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, set for introduction in the Lok Sabha, also aims at renaming the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995.
On Thursday, 8 August, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav claimed the bill was just an excuse to sell the Waqf lands.
“The target is to sell defence, railway, Nazul land. Waqf board lands are just another link in the chain of ‘schemes for the benefit of BJP members’ after defence land, railway land, Nazul land,” he said in Hindi.
“Why doesn’t the BJP openly write: ‘Issued in the interest of BJP members’,” Yadav added. “A guarantee should be provided in writing that Waqf Board lands will not be sold.”
Attacking the saffron party, Yadav said the BJP was working like a real estate company.
He added, “It should change its name by writing ‘zameen (land)’ in place of ‘janata (people)’—Bharatiya Zameen Party.”
“The BJP’s only work is to divide Hindus and Muslims, snatch the rights of Muslim brothers and work on how to snatch the rights given to them in the Constitution,” he had said.
‘वक़्फ़ बोर्ड’ का ये सब संशोधन भी बस एक बहाना है
रक्षा, रेल, नज़ूल लैंड की तरह ज़मीन बेचना निशाना हैवक़्फ़ बोर्ड की ज़मीनें, डिफ़ेंस लैंड, रेल लैंड, नज़ूल लैंड के बाद ‘भाजपाइयों के लाभार्थ योजना’ की शृंखला की एक और कड़ी मात्र हैं। भाजपा क्यों नहीं खुलकर लिख देती : ‘भाजपाई-हित… pic.twitter.com/VwK3YyWAG5
— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) August 8, 2024
Congress MPs KC Venugopal and Hibi Eden have also given notices to oppose the introduction of the Bill in the Lok Sabha.
Venugopal said the Congress will oppose the bill and has also given a notice for the same.
Eden has said in his notice that he opposes the presentation of the bill as it is “unconstitutional” and cited that it is in conflict with the Right to Property (Article 300A), the sources said.
The Bill can potentially infringe on the property rights of individuals and religious institutions without adequate legal safeguards, he argued.
Eden also contended that the bill is an infringement on the Fundamental Right of Religious Freedom under Article 25, the sources said.
The Bill’s imposition of new conditions for creating waqfs and the requirement for existing waqfs to register detailed information on a government portal might be perceived as undue interference in the administration of religious endowments, he said in his notice.
Eden also argued that it is an encroachment on states’ powers.
On Wednesday, 7 August, the Opposition demanded the Bill be sent to Parliament’s standing committee for scrutiny after it is introduced, with the government telling the Business Advisory Committee that it will take a call after assessing the sense of Lok Sabha.
Congress MP Gourav Gogoi and Trinamool Congress MP Sudip Bandyopadhya were among the opposition members who made the demand to send the Bill to Parliament’s standing committee for scrutiny after it is introduced.
According to its statement of objects and reasons, the bill seeks to omit Section 40 of the current law relating to the powers of the board to decide if a property is Waqf property.
It provides for a broad-based composition of the Central Waqf Council and the State Waqf Boards and ensures the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims in such bodies.
The bill also proposes the establishment of a separate Board of Auqaf for the Boharas and Aghakhanis. The draft law provides for the representation of Shias, Sunnis, Bohras, Agakhanis and other backward classes among Muslim communities.
The bill also aims to clearly define “‘Waqf’ as Waqf by any person practising Islam for at least five years and having ownership of such property”.
One of its objectives is streamlining the manner of registration of Waqfs through a central portal and database. A detailed procedure is established for mutation as per revenue laws with due notice to all concerned before recording any property as a Waqf property.
The Wakf Act, 1995, was brought to regulate ‘Auqaf’ (assets donated and notified as Waqf) by a ‘wakif’ (the person who dedicates a property for any purpose recognised by Muslim law as religious or charitable).
The Act was last amended in 2013.
(With PTI inputs)
