The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), constituted to examine the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, approved it on Monday with 14 amendments to the original draft.
The panel approved all 14 amendments proposed by the ruling BJP-led NDA members and rejected all 44 suggestions put forward by the opposition.
After approving the Bill, the panel chairman, Jagdambika Pal, said that the amendments adopted by the committee would make the law better and more effective, news agency PTI reported.
However, opposition MPs accused Pal of “subverting” the democratic process. “It was a farcical exercise. We were not heard. Pal has acted in a dictatorial manner,” TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee said to PTI.
A key amendment proposed by the committee is to remove the concept of “Waqf by user” from the current law. The amendment ensures that existing Waqf properties used for religious purposes cannot be challenged on this basis.
Pal said that amendments suggested by NDA members in 14 clauses of the Bill had been accepted, while the opposition’s attempts to introduce changes in all 44 clauses were defeated through voting.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was introduced in the Lok Sabha in August last year. It aims to amend the Waqf Act of 1995 to address issues in the regulation and management of Waqf properties.
Following its introduction, the Bill was referred by the ruling BJP government to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
The panel received a substantial number of proposed amendments—572 in total—from its members.
The committee comprises 31 members, of whom 21 are from the Lok Sabha and 10 are from the Rajya Sabha.
The Bill has faced backlash from opposition parties, with debates arising over several provisions.
The Bill proposes altering the composition of the Central Waqf Council and State Waqf Boards to include non-Muslim members. The opposition has criticised this move as potentially undermining the autonomy of these religious institutions.
The provisions of the Bill grant district collectors the authority to decide the status of waqf properties and settle disputes. The opposition is also raising concerns on this point.
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