- Thursday, December 26, 2024
Minority Affairs minister Kiren Rijiju recently said there have been demands made by Muslims to make regulation of waqf properties more transparent and efficient
By: India Weekly
THE Narendra Modi government is planning to bring a Bill in the current monsoon session in Parliament to amend the 1995 law governing Waqf boards.
The bill, which was recently passed by the Union Cabinet, has not been introduced in Parliament yet.
The government sources claim the Bill aims to ensure more accountability and transparency in their functioning and mandatory inclusion of women in these bodies.
They claimed that the move comes in the backdrop of demands from within the Muslim community.
Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju recently said there have been demands made by common Muslims to make regulation of waqf properties more transparent and efficient.
There are media reports that the Union Cabinet has approved around 40 amendments to the existing Waqf Act.
There are 30 Waqf boards in the country and a PTI report quoting sources points out that the revenue generated by Waqf properties is estimated at Rs 2 billion per annum.
The amount is not in sync with the number of properties such bodies have, the report said.
If the Waqf Act is amended, it will make it mandatory for waqf boards to register their properties with district collectors to ensure their actual valuation.
Former minority affairs minister and senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is also in favour of the proposed amendments and remarked that the Waqf system has to come out of the “touch-me-not” syndrome.
However, several Muslim organisations and clerics have opposed the proposed amendments in the Waqf Act.
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board has said that any interference with the legal status and the powers of Waqf boards will not be tolerated.
All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi alleged that the NDA government wants to take away the autonomy of Waqf Boards.
Several opposition leaders have alleged that the BJP-led government’s move to amend the Waqf Act will create a divide in the society and asserted they will strongly oppose such a legislation.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said his party will oppose the Centre’s move and accused the BJP of trying to snatch away the rights of Muslims.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi alleged that the BJP-led government wants to run away from the discussion on Budget and, therefore, they have come up with the Waqf issue.
“Until it is tabled in Parliament, I would not like to comment,” she added.
CPI(ML) MP Sudama Prasad said the BJP-led government’s only intention is to promote a divisive agenda.
“Bring a bill to deal with unemployment. But they are 24X7 only looking at divisive agenda like mandir-masjid and Hindustan-Pakistan,” he said.
