Team Clarion
NEW DELHI – All India Majlis-e Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi has endorsed the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) call for nationwide protest against the Waqf Amendment Bill.
Addressing a meeting in the Telangana city of Mehboobnagar on Monday, Owaisi criticised the bill as a threat to constitutional rights.
Owaisi made it clear that the AIMPLB has taken a stand against the bill and will be leading the protests across the country.
“The All India Muslim Personal Law Board has launched a nationwide protest and decided to inform people about how this bill is against our constitution,” he said.
Calling the bill a çonspiracy’, the AIMPLB, an apex body of Muslim clerics, has called for protests demanding its withdrawal.
The Waqf Bill seeks to replace the existing Waqf Act of 1995 with the Integrated Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development Act, 1995. The proposed legislation has sparked significant concern among Muslim organisations, who fear it may infringe on religious rights and practices.
The bill seeks to omit Section 40 relating to the powers of the Waqf Board to decide if a property is waqf property, provide for filing of accounts of waqf by mutawallis (caretakers) to the board through a central portal for better control over their activities, reform the tribunal structure with two members, and provide for appeals against the orders of the tribunal to the high court within a specified period of 90 days.
In response to the introduction of the bill, the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) led by BJP MP Jagadambika Pal has invited suggestions from the public, NGOs, experts, and stakeholders. An advertisement issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat highlighted that anyone can send their suggestions via post, fax, or email within 15 days. The JPC, acknowledging the broader implications of the bill, is seeking a wide range of views and memorandums.
During the JPC’s second meeting on August 30, the committee heard from various Muslim organisations, including the All India Sunni Jamiat Ulama Mumbai, Indian Muslims for Civil Rights based in Delhi, the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board, and the Rajasthan Board of Muslim Waqf. These groups expressed serious concerns over several provisions in the bill, which they believe could undermine religious freedoms.
“It’s a matter of religious belief and practice, and the government should not try to interfere in it,” said a representative from one of the concerned Muslim organisations, echoing the widespread apprehension within the community.
As protests loom, Owaisi’s call for nationwide demonstrations is likely to intensify the debate surrounding the Waqf Bill, highlighting the ongoing tension between legislative reform and religious rights in the country.
