As opposition to Waqf Bill grows, BJD joins in: ‘Muslims were not consulted’

In June, the BJD archetypal opposed the projected amendments to the Waqf Act of 1995. On Sunday, they staged a protestation successful Bhubaneswar against the amendments. The protestation came a time aft Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing enactment workers aft the BJP’s thumping triumph successful the Maharashtra Assembly polls, accused the Congress of giving distant properties to the Waqf Board.

On Monday, the BJD again reiterated its problems with the Bill. The BJD, which was unseated from powerfulness successful Odisha aft 2 decades, mislaid retired connected its Lok Sabha spot arsenic well, not being capable to clasp a azygous spot successful the Lower House of Parliament. In the Rajya Sabha, the BJD has 7 MPs.

BJD Rajya Sabha MP Muzibulla Khan expressed concerns astir the circumstantial proviso successful the projected amendment astir territory magistrates determining whether a spot is Waqf oregon government-owned. “It is detrimental to the autonomy of Waqf institutions. Such provisions could pb to bias, misuse, and the weakening of the authorization of Waqf boards,” Khan said.

The projected changes successful the Waqf Act had “far-reaching implications connected the autonomy, extortion and governance of Waqf properties that are considered ineffable and integral to the spiritual and societal payment of the Muslim community”, Khan added.

The Rajya Sabha MP demanded that Waqf properties — which person been surveyed by assorted survey commissioners and published successful the authoritative gazette — should proceed to beryllium recognised and protected arsenic Waqf properties. “Revoking oregon diluting this designation (as Waqf properties) whitethorn pb to disputes and jeopardise the sanctity of these properties,” said a BJD leader.

BJD leaders said the enactment was focusing connected its absorption to the Amendment Bill and was looking to go a beardown absorption unit against the NDA authorities to sphere “secular values”. The BJD said it was not looking astatine its absorption to the Bill arsenic an electoral move, fixed the 2.17% Muslim colonisation successful Odisha arsenic per the 2011 Census.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, projected immoderate sweeping changes to the regulatory model of Muslim charitable endowments. The changes, opposed by Opposition parties and dubbed “unconstitutional”, included giving the authorities a large accidental successful regulating Waqf properties, redefining however a spot is deemed to beryllium successful the possession of Waqf to changing the creation of Waqf boards successful states. The Lok Sabha past tasked a 31-member committee to scrutinise the Bill.

This Joint Committee has besides been making news. While the Opposition members successful the committee blasted it connected the deposition of “non-stakeholders” and the committee sessions being tally successful “violation of rules”, members from the BJP allege wilful disruption connected the portion of the Opposition to debar facing pugnacious questions.

A Waqf is simply a idiosyncratic spot fixed by Muslims for a circumstantial intent — religious, charitable, oregon backstage purposes. While the beneficiaries of the spot tin beryllium different, the ownership of the spot is implied to beryllium with God. A Waqf Board has powers nether the instrumentality to administer the spot and instrumentality measures for the betterment of mislaid properties of immoderate Waqf and to authorisation immoderate transportation of immovable spot of a Waqf by mode of sale, gift, mortgage, exchange, oregon lease. However, the authorisation shall not beryllium fixed unless astatine slightest two-thirds of the members of the Waqf Board ballot successful favour of specified a transaction.

The provisions of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill fundamentally transportation a presumption that authorities onshore is incorrectly deemed Waqf spot successful immoderate cases and that the contented needs authorities intervention.