Parliament Passes Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, After RS Nod

India

pti-PTI

Updated: Friday, April 4, 2025, 7:58 [IST]

Parliament
early
Friday
approved
the
Waqf
(Amendment)
Bill,
2025,
after
the
Rajya
Sabha
gave
its
nod
to
the
contentious
legislation
following
an
over
13-hour
debate.

The
discussion
witnessed
staunch
objections
from
opposition
parties,
which
termed
the
Bill
“anti-Muslim” and
“unconstitutional”
with
the
government
responding
that
the
“historic
reform”
would
benefit
the
minority
community.

The
Bill
was
passed
in
the
Rajya
Sabha
with
128
members
voting
in
favour
and
95
opposing
it.
It
was
passed
in
the
Lok
Sabha
early
Thursday,
with
288
members
supporting
it
and
232
against
it.

Parliament
also
approved
the
Mussalman
Wakf
(Repeal)
Bill,
2025,
with
the
Rajya
Sabha
approving
it.

The
Lok
Sabha
has
already
given
its
nod
to
the
Bill.
Participating
in
the
discussion,
Union
Minority
Affairs
Minister
Kiren
Rijiju
accused
the
Congress
and
other
opposition
parties
of
scaring
the
Muslim
community
with
the
Bill
and
asserted
that
the
central
government
worked
for
all
with
the
motto
of
‘Sabka
Saath,
Sabka
Vikas’.

Rijiju
said
the
Waqf
Board
is
a
statutory
body
and,
as
such,
like
all
government
bodies,
it
should
be
secular.
He
said
the
inclusion
of
a
few
non-Muslims
on
the
Waqf
Board
would
not
alter
the
decisions
of
the
body
and
instead
would
add
value.

The
minister
also
claimed
that
the
Bill
brought
by
the
government
has
incorporated
several
suggestions
made
by
the
Joint
Parliamentary
Committee
(JPC)
as
well
as
the
stakeholders.
The
Opposition
INDIA
bloc
parties
opposed
the
Bill,
alleging
that
it
was
“unconstitutional”
and
aimed
at
targeting
Muslims.
They
claimed
that
the
aim
of
the
legislation
was
to
take
over
the
properties
of
Muslims
and
hand
them
to
corporations.

Leaders
of
several
opposition
parties,
including
the
Congress,
the
TMC,
the
DMK,
the
AAP,
the
Shiv
Sena
(UBT),
the
Samajwadi
Party,
the
RJD,
and
Left
parties,
alleged
that
the
Bill
was
brought
by
the
government
with
mala
fide
intentions.
Some
of
them
also
demanded
the
withdrawal
of
the
Bill.
Intervening
in
the
discussion,
Leader
of
the
House
and
BJP
leader
J
P
Nadda
said
the
Bill
is
not
against
Muslims
and
claimed
that
it
is
aimed
at
helping
the
poor
and
protecting
the
rights
of
Muslim
women.

Nadda
accused
the
Congress
of
making
Muslim
women
second-grade
citizens
during
its
rule
at
the
Centre.
“You
made
the
Indian
Muslim
ladies
second-grade
citizens,”
Nadda
said,
referring
to
the
Congress
party
and
added,
“It
was
only
India
where
Muslim
women
were
not
brought
into
the
mainstream.”

While
triple
talaq
was
banned
in
Muslim
countries
such
as
Egypt,
Sudan,
Bangladesh,
and
Syria
several
years
ago,
the
Congress-led
UPA
government
did
nothing
for
Muslim
women
while
it
was
in
power
for
a
decade.
“We
believe
in
real
service,
not
lip
service…I
stand
in
support
of
the
(Waqf)
Bill
as
its
sole
purpose
is
to
bring
reforms
in
managing
the
Waqf
properties,”
Nadda
said.
Rijiju
said
the
Waqf
Board
is
a
statutory
body
and
all
government
bodies
should
be
secular.

Explaining
the
inclusion
of
non-Muslims
on
the
Board,
he
said
the
number
of
non-Muslims
has
been
restricted
to
only
four
out
of
22.
He
also
accused
the
Congress
and
other
opposition
parties
of
“pushing
Muslims
out
of
the
mainstream.”

For
60
years,
he
alleged,
the
Congress
and
others
ruled
the
country
but
did
not
do
much
for
the
welfare
of
Muslims,
who
continue
to
remain
poor.
Leader
of
Opposition
Mallikarjun
Kharge
said
the
government
is
trying
to
sow
the
seeds
of
conflict
by
suppressing
Muslims
through
the
Bill
and
appealed
to
the
ruling
party
not
to
disturb
peace
and
harmony
in
the
country.

Kharge,
also
the
Congress
president,
said
the
legislation
is
“unconstitutional”
and
not
good
for
Indian
Muslims.
He
urged
the
government
to
withdraw
the
Bill
which
has
a
lot
of
“mistakes”
and
not
make
it
a
prestige
issue.
He
also
accused
the
NDA
government
of
trying
to
create
trouble
for
Muslims,
claiming
that
the
Bill
seeks
to
destroy
the
community
by
usurping
their
properties.
Earlier,
initiating
the
debate,
Congress
MP
Syed
Naseer
Hussain
termed
the
proposed
legislation
“unconstitutional”
and
alleged
that
it
targets
the
Muslim
community.
He
also
accused
the
BJP
of
using
the
proposed
legislation
to
trigger
communal
tension
and
polarisation
in
the
society
to
strengthen
its
vote
bank.
He
alleged
that
the
Bill
seeks
to
treat
Muslims
as
“second-class”
citizens
in
the
country.

Hussain
also
noted
that
the
BJP-led
government
was
trying
to
bulldoze
the
legislation
in
the
Upper
House.
Manoj
Jha
of
the
RJD
said
the
“content
and
intent”
of
the
Bill
puts
a
question
mark
on
the
government’s
motives.
He
also
said
the
government
should
send
the
Bill
to
the
select
committee
of
Parliament
once
again.
Jha
alleged
the
Bill
was
akin
to
“dog
whistle
politics”
to
keep
Muslims
away
from
the
mainstream.
Samajwadi
Party
MP
Ram
Gopal
Yadav
emphasised
all
religions
must
be
treated
with
respect
and
the
government
must
prevent
India
from
“shifting
towards
a
totalitarian
state.”

He
said
India
has
a
huge
population
of
minorities,
especially
Muslims
and
if
a
large
section
of
people
feel
that
injustice
has
been
meted
out
to
them,
any
efforts
to
appease
them
will
not
work.
John
Brittas
of
the
CPI(M)
said
the
Bill
was
an
attack
on
the
Constitution.

“It
attacks
the
basic
tenets
of
India’s
Constitution,
its
secularism,
democracy,
and
equality.
There
is
a
cardinal
violation
happening.
They
have
already
discriminated
against
people
by
segregating
them.
They
are
now
segregating
God
from
God.
Hindu
God
from
Allah,”
he
said.

Y
V
Subba
Reddy
of
the
YSRCP
too
opposed
the
Bill,
saying
it
was
“unconstitutional”.
Congress
member
Abhishek
Singhvi
said
the
Bill
has
omitted
the
concept
of
‘Waqf
by
user’,
at
least
prospectively,
by
disallowing
Waqfs
to
be
created
based
on
uninterrupted
usage
over
a
significant
period.
“This
is
a
deliberate
attempt
by
the
government
to
further
its
own
agenda
by
minimising
protection
conferred
upon
Waqf
properties
with
the
right
hand
and
significantly
increase
its
own
control
and
power
to
permanently
claim
these
properties
with
its
left
hand,”
Singhvi
alleged.

Independent
MP
Kapil
Sibal
said
non-Muslims
could
earlier
form
the
Waqf
Board
too,
but
this
Bill
does
not
allow
that
anymore.
He
said
there
should
be
reform
in
the
Hindu
religion
and
questioned
why
only
one
community
was
being
targeted.
“Bring
a
law
to
ensure
that
women
have
rights
in
bequeathing
property,”
he
said,
urging
the
government
to
make
a
commitment
in
the
House
that
it
would
bring
a
law
to
maintain
the
rights
of
daughters.

While
BJD’s
Muzibulla
Khan
said
Muslims
were
concerned
over
the
inclusion
of
non-Muslims
on
the
Waqf
Board,
party
leader
Sasmit
Patra
said
the
BJD
had
not
issued
any
whip
to
its
MPs
and
they
were
free
to
vote
of
their
own
will.
DMK
leader
Tiruchi
Siva
said
his
party
opposes
the
Bill
as
it
is
legally
flawed.
“I
stand
on
behalf
of
my
party
to
oppose
this
Bill…
We
reject
the
Bill
in
its
entirety
because
it
is
legally
flawed,
constitutionally
indefensible
and
morally
reprehensible,”
he
stated.

“Why
is
a
certain
community
being
targeted
is
our
question?”
Siva
asked.
The
intention
of
the
government
is
mala
fide
and
deplorable,
and
the
DMK
is
certain
that
the
Supreme
Court
will
strike
the
Bill
down,
Siva
said.

AAP
member
Sanjay
Singh
said
the
Bill
is
against
the
tenets
of
the
Indian
Constitution,
and
alleged
that
the
government
wants
to
control
Muslim
religious
bodies
through
the
legislation.
Singh
noted
that
after
Muslims,
the
government
will
target
other
religious
bodies
of
the
Sikhs,
Christians,
and
Jains
and
hand
them
over
to
their
“friends”.

Shiv
Sena
(UBT)
MP
Sanjay
Raut
spoke
against
the
Bill
and
questioned
the
government’s
intent.
“Why
is
the
government
so
worried
about
poor
Muslims?”
Raut
said,
accusing
the
NDA
of
diverting
attention
from
US
President
Donald
Trump’s
announcement
of
reciprocal
tariffs
on
India.