Wakf Bill: Strong opposition from the opposition, said- not BJP, but Bharatiya Jameen Party

#News Bureau August 8,2024

Congress MPs KC Venugopal and Hibi Eden gave notice in the Lok Sabha on Thursday to oppose the introduction of a bill to amend the law governing the Waqf Boards. Other opposition parties, including the SP, also expressed concern over the proposed amendments and demanded that the bill be sent to the Standing Committee of Parliament for scrutiny. If passed, this bill will give the government a big right to directly intervene in the matter of Waqf properties. Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju will introduce it in the Lok Sabha on Thursday.

Congress and SP have opened a big front against this bill. SP MP and party chief Akhilesh Yadav even targeted the BJP and quipped that the party is acting like a real estate company and it should change its name to “Bharatiya Zameen Party”.

Akhilesh Yadav has instructed his MPs that when the bill is presented in the Lok Sabha, all the MPs should be present and oppose it strongly. Akhilesh has expressed his intentions through a tweet on Thursday. Akhilesh wrote on Twitter- All these amendments of ‘Waqf Board’ are also just an excuse/ The target is to sell the land like Defence, Railway, Nazul Land. The SP President said- Waqf Board lands are just another link in the chain of ‘schemes for the benefit of BJP members’ after Defence Land, Railway Land, Nazul Land. Why doesn’t BJP openly write: ‘Issued in the interest of BJP members.’ A guarantee should be given in writing that the lands of Waqf Board will not be sold. Akhilesh said- BJP is working like a real estate company. It should write ‘Zameen’ in place of ‘Janta’ in its name and rename it: Bharatiya Zameen Party.

Samajwadi Party MP from Faizabad (Ayodhya) Awadhesh Prasad Pasi said that this bill is an attempt by the government to encroach upon the Waqf property. He said, “Let the bill be introduced in Parliament, Samajwadi Party will make its stand clear.”

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said that all stakeholders must be consulted on the bill and amendments must be made if needed. “The way this bill is being brought, I would ask if it has been discussed within their alliance (NDA). Have JDU and TDP seen this Waqf Bill and given their consent? If this has not been done, then all stakeholders, MPs must be heard,” Priyanka said.

Congress MP K. Suresh says, “In the Business Advisory Committee meeting on Wednesday, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju told us that the government will introduce the Waqf Act Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha after Question Hour on Thursday. Opposition parties including Congress, TMC, NCP (SCP), Samajwadi Party and DMK opposed the bill. We said in the meeting that this is a hasty decision, without discussing with the concerned Muslim organizations and the concerned stakeholders, you are bringing this bill for some political gain or polarization. We demanded that this bill be sent to the Standing Committee for evaluation or thorough verification… The entire opposition is strongly opposing this bill….”