Editor Mr.Mayank Rawat ( Chief Editor Mr. Rohit Mishra )
NEW DELHI: Samajwadi Party MP Ram Gopal Yadav on Tuesday criticised the BJP for pushing the Waqf Amendment Bill, accusing the ruling party of undermining communal harmony in India.
Speaking to media, Yadav said, “A plan was made to spoil the communal harmony in this country. The Waqf Amendment Bill was rushed through the JPC, passed quickly and forcefully. The opposition was given a 1000-page report to read just a day before, with no time to review it thoroughly.”
Yadav further alleged that the BJP’s actions since coming to power have aimed at disturbing the harmony between different communities. “Ever since the BJP came to power, its aim has been to spoil the mutual harmony in this country,” he said.
Congress MP Dr Syed Naseer Hussain, a member of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), also strongly condemned the government for pushing the Waqf Amendment Bill without adequate discussion or debate.
“The way the debate was supposed to be held in JPC, it was not held, nor was there a clause-to-clause discussion. The way this bill is being brought in a hurry shows that the government does not want to work on it seriously,” Hussain told ANI. He added, “The government does not want reforms to take place in Waqf institutions. The government is spreading wrong information about this bill all over the country…”
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari also reaffirmed his party’s stance, stating, “We (Congress) have a very clear stand on Waqf. When the JPC was formed, we presented all our objections, but they were not accepted. When this (Waqf Amendment Bill) comes to the House, we will oppose it in the same way as we did in the JPC.”
Meanwhile, the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) called for amendments to the Waqf Act in relation to land disputes in Kerala. The CBCI urged political parties and legislators to approach land issues, including those in Munambam, Kerala, with an unbiased and constructive perspective.
The CBCI expressed concerns over provisions in the Central Waqf Act that are inconsistent with the Constitution, particularly in relation to the Waqf Board in Kerala, which has used these provisions to declare the ancestral residential properties of more than 600 families in Munambam as Waqf land.
In a statement released on Monday, the CBCI highlighted that this issue had escalated into a complex legal dispute over the past three years. The organisation called for a legal amendment to resolve the issue, urging elected representatives to recognise the need for such changes.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, also known as the ‘Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development (UMEED) Bill,’ aims to address key issues related to Waqf properties, including digitisation, enhanced audits, greater transparency, and legal measures to reclaim illegally occupied properties.
The Waqf Act of 1995, which regulates Waqf properties, has been criticised for long-standing issues such as mismanagement, corruption, and encroachments.
(With inputs from agencies)
Mayank Rawat
