The government will likely introduce a Bill to amend the Wakf Act of 1995 in the Parliament on Monday to ensure accountability and transparency in the Waqf boards’ functioning and mandatory inclusion of women in these bodies.
In response, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board has labelled the proposed changes as “unacceptable”, PTI reported.
The Bill to amend the Wakf Act, 1995, will make it mandatory for Waqf boards to register their properties with district collectors to ensure their actual valuation. There are 30 Waqf boards in the country.
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Originally, Waqf boards had around 52,000 properties throughout India. By 2009, there were 3,00,000 registered Waqf properties covering four lakh acres of land, and as on date, there are 8,72,292 such properties in more than eight lakh acres of land.
While referring to the revenue generated by such bodies, the sources underlined that the money can only be used for the welfare of the Muslim community and for no other purpose, PTI reported.
The amendment Bill has as many as 40 changes in the current law. The government, as of now, does not plan to leave the Bill pending in Parliament after introduction.
The key changes proposed in the law include ensuring verification of land before a board announces it as a Waqf property. The changes with regard to the composition of the Waqf boards will ensure inclusion of women in these bodies.
All India Muslim Personal Law Board spokesperson SQR Ilyas said, “The BJP government always wanted to do this. Following the conclusion of the 2024 (Lok Sabha) elections, we thought that there will be a change in the BJP’s attitude, but that’s not the case. I, however, feel that this is not the right move.”
Hitting out at the proposed amendments, AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi said, “BJP has been against the Waqf Board and Waqf properties since the beginning and there is a ‘Hindutva agenda’ of the RSS. They have continued to put efforts to end the Waqf Board and properties from the start.”
“Demand for improvement in Waqf board is not new, it has been going on for the past 30-40 years. Those who are raising this demand and affected by it are Muslims themselves. There is a need for betterment in the Waqf board and I hope Samajwadi Party, Congress and TMC will support it (the Bill), whenever it is introduced,” said BJP leader Ajay Alok.
(With inputs from PTI)