The government introduced the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024 in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju tabled the bill in the Lower House. While addressing the Lower House, Rijiju said, the bill will not curb the independence of any institute. The bill is not about taking the power of the institute away but strengthening it, he asserted.
"The government is bringing these amendments because you failed to do so," said the Union Minister slamming Congress.
If you support the bill, you will get the blessing of crores of women, he told the grand old party.
"With this bill, there is no interference in the freedom of any religious body....Forget about taking anyone’s rights, this bill has been brought to give rights to those who never got them," he added.
Congress and other Opposition parties protested the bill in the Lower House.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s ally Janta Dal (United) JD-U MP Rajiv Ranjan Singh also known as Lalan Singh supported the bill, saying it would bring transparency in the Waqf board. Every institution should be functional in a transparent way, he added.
"Shri Kiren Rijiju to move for leave to introduce a Bill further to amend the Waqf Act, 1995. Also to introduce the Bill," Legislative Business notice read.
The Opposition parties on Wednesday demanded that 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.
There is a strong possibility that the government may agree to refer the bill, which is being opposed by some Muslim organisations, to a parliamentary panel.
Some parties, which have been supportive of the government's agenda, have also expressed their reservation over the proposed legislation, said the sources.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said at the meeting of the Committee, which includes members from major parties and where the government discusses its proposed agenda, that the government will take a call whether or not to send the bill for parliamentary scrutiny on Thursday, they added.
Opposition's stand on the bill
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.
Incidentally, the department-related standing committees of Lok Sabha are yet to be constituted. The House may form a separate panel in the absence of the standing committee to scrutinise the Bill in case the government decides on such a course of action.
What is Waqf (Amendment) 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 also seeks to rename the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995.
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 Bohras and Aghakhanis. The draft law provides for the representation of Shias, Sunnis, Bohras, Agakhanis and other backward classes among Muslim communities.
(With PTI inputs)
