Following a heated debate on Thursday, a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) was established on Friday to thoroughly examine the proposed Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024. This committee, composed of 21 members from the Lok Sabha and 10 members from the Rajya Sabha, will scrutinize the bill’s provisions.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju formally proposed the names of 21 Lok Sabha MPs to be included in the JPC during a Friday session in the Lok Sabha, requesting the Rajya Sabha to nominate 10 members for the panel. The Lok Sabha members chosen for the JPC are Jagdambika Pal, Nishikant Dubey, Tejasvi Surya, Aparajita Sarangi, Sanjay Jaiswal, Dilip Saikia, Abhijit Gangopadhyay, DK Aruna, Gaurav Gogoi, Imran Masood, Mohammad Jawed, Maulana Mohibullah Nadvi, Kalyan Banerjee, A Raja, Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu, Dileshwar Kamait, Arvind Sawant, Suresh Gopinath, Naresh Ganpat Mhaske, Arun Bharti, and Asaduddin Owaisi.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, seeks to effectively address issues concerning the authority of State Waqf Boards, the registration and surveying of Waqf properties, and the removal of encroachments. However, the introduction of the bill was met with strong opposition from various opposition parties, including the Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Trinamool Congress, and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM). These parties vehemently argued that the bill’s provisions were discriminatory against Muslims, undermined federalism, and violated constitutional principles.
Despite the opposition, the government maintained that the proposed legislation did not intend to interfere with the operations of mosques. Congress leader KC Venugopal, expressing his opposition to the bill, stated, “We are Hindus, but we respect the faiths of other religions. This bill is tailored for the Maharashtra and Haryana elections. You don’t understand that the people of India gave you a clear lesson last time. This is an attack on the federal system.” Kanimozhi, a DMK MP, argued that the bill directly violates Article 30 of the Constitution, which pertains to the rights of minorities to administer their institutions. “This bill targets a particular religious group,” Kanimozhi asserted.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 proposes a name change for the Waqf Act, 1995, suggesting the new title of “Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995.” The JPC will now delve into the bill’s provisions, examining its potential impact and implications.
