The government on Thursday tabled the Waqf (Amendment) Bill in Lok Sabha and after a brief discussion, agreed to refer it to a joint parliamentary committee for scrutiny. The bill aims to change the Waqf Act drastically, affecting the proprietorship and management of nearly 8.5 lakh Waqf properties in India. NDA allies, particularly Telugu Desam Party, Janata Dal(U) and LJP, told BJP leadership that since a lot of confusion has been spread about this bill among Muslims, it would be better to refer it to a JPC instead of hurriedly passing it in Parliament. Opposition parties led by Congress, Samajwadi party, NCP(Sharad pawar), DMK, National Conference, Indian Union Muslim League and Owaisi’s AIMIM, strongly opposed the bill alleging that it amount to governmental interference in the working of Waqf Boards. The opposition alleged that the government’s motive behind this bill was not bonafide, and it was measure to ensure backdoor acquisition of Waqf properties. Union Minister for Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju introduced two bills, Waqf Amendment Bill and Mussalman Waqf Repeal Bill in Lok Sabha. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said, since the bills violate Articles 14, 15 and 25 of the Constitution, it is an arbitrary step which goes against the basic nature of the Constitution. The bill proposes 40 amendments in the Waqf Act, 1995. One of the major amendments proposed relates to the powers of Waqf Tribunal, whose decisions cannot be challenged in courts. Under the new provision, if a Waqf Board declares a property as Waqf property, it will have to intimate the District Collector, who will initiate probe, get a survey done, and if the documents are found in order, can allow it to be declared as Waqf property. The new provision allows an appellant to go to the High Court to challenge a decision of the Waqf tribunal. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav questioned why the bill provides for inclusion of two women and representatives of backward Muslims on the Waqf Board. He questioned the propriety of nominating these members. Defending the bill, Kiren Rijiju said, this is not the first time Waqf Act is being amended, The Waqf Act of 1995 was amended in 2013, but the amendments made by the then Congress-led UPA government were against the recommendations of Sachhar Committee and the JPC set up under the chairmanship of K. Rahman Khan. Rijiju said, there are nearly 8.5 lakh Waqf properties in India, and there have been frequent reports about misuse of Waqf properties. He said, government does not want to interfere with the religious freedom of Muslims, nor is the bill against the Constitution. The bill has been brought to give more rights to Muslims who are economically weak, he said. Let me elaborate on what Rijiju wanted to convey. Since the time Waqf Act was made, there had been frequent demands for amendments. In 1976, a committee was set up. The committee, in its report said, most of the Waqf properties are under the control of Mutawallis (caretakers) and this needs to be changed. The committee also pointed out to massive irregularities in the Waqf Board accounts, and recommended regular audit. In 1995, the then Congress government made certain amendments. In 2005, the Sachchar Committee was set up, which said there are 4.69 lakh Waqf properties in India, and their earnings amounted to only Rs 162 crore, whereas according to market rates, the earnings should have been at least Rs 12,000 crore. The Sachchar committee wanted a probe into where this money was being channelized. It recommended transparency in the management of Waqf properties, widening the base of Waqf Boards, inclusion of at least two women in Central and State Waqf Boards, representation for backward Muslims in Waqf Boards, and appointment of a Class 1 officer to run the Waqf Board in a proper manner. The JPC headed by K. Rahman Khan, set up during Congress regime, also said that most of the time of Waqf Boards is being spent in appointing or removing Mutawallis (caretakers), and this should end. The JPC also recommended proper survey of all Waqf properties, inclusion of experts in the Boards, computerization of all Waqf properties and income and expenditure accounts of Waqf Board, and a re-look at the Waqf Act, 1995. The then UPA regime, headed by Dr Manmohan Singh, did not accept the recommendations of Sachchar Committee and JPC, and instead in 2013, it gave more powers to the Waqf boards. The then UPA government made it compulsory for inclusion of only Muslims as members of Waqf Boards. All these measures went against the recommendations of Sachchar Committee and JPC. Now that the Modi government has tried to rectify these mistakes by bringing amendments, the bill has been sent to JPC, keeping in mind the views of NDA allies like TDP, JD-U and LJP. LJP chief and Union Minister Chirag Paswan alleged that the opposition parties were spreading confusion that the bill was “anti-Muslim”, and this needs to be countered. Whatever Chirag Paswan may say, the fact remains that TDP, JD-U and LJP are concerned about Muslim votes. Since Bihar assembly elections are due next year, NDA allies like Nitish Kumar and Chirag Paswan are unwilling to take any risks. NDA allies found a middle path. They extended support to the bill during introduction stage, and then opted for sending it to JPC for scrutiny. The government accepted their views. BJP wanted to convey a political message that the opposition’s stand was political in nature and nothing to do with the interests of Muslims. It was a calculated step by the government. I personally feel that the Waqf Act must be amended, the sooner, the better. The main reason is: after the UPA government in 2013 gave more powers to Waqf Boards, the number of Waqf properties has gone up to 4.69 lakhs to more than 8.5 lakhs. Let me cite some examples. Last year, Gujarat administration used bulldozers to remove illegally occupied government land near the Dwarka sea coast. At that time, a total of 142 properties in Jamnagar and Dwarka were registered as Waqf properties. A mazaar was built on a land belonging to a farmer named Bhima, and it was shown as Waqf property in the register. Legally, no action could have been taken under Waqf Act, and the mazaar was saved from bulldozers. When people knew about this, they implemented this formula elsewhere. 341 new properties were registered with the Waqf Board in the last two years, while applications for more than 500 similar properties are pending. In Lucknow, Annapurna temple has been shown as a temple since 1962 in revenue records, but in 2016, it was declared as waqf property. There are thousands of similar cases. In most of the places, these disputes are the main cause behind communal tension. Amending Waqf Act is the need of the hour and the bill must not be kept pending for the sake of votes.