Waqf Bill passed in Lok Sabha, to be tabled in Rajya Sabha today
The Waqf Amendment Bill sailed through the Lok Sabha early on Thursday after a marathon 12-hour debate that saw the government and the Opposition go toe-to-toe on the contentious bill well-past midnight.
The debate was intense but the numerical strength of the government had the last word. Around 2 am, the bill was passed by 288-232 votes.
The proposed legislation — which will be tabled in Rajya Sabha later today — aims to amend the 1995 law governing Waqf properties.
But the contentious provisions in the amended bill include mandatory inclusion of two non-Muslim members in the Central Waqf Council and Waqf Boards. There is also the stipulation that individuals who practiced Islam for at least five years only can donate properties to Waqf. Also, under the proposed law, government property identified as Waqf will cease to belong to it and the local Collector will determine its ownership.
The Opposition — which contended that the Joint Parliamentary Committee set up to examine the Bill did not consider their suggestions — argued that the bill was unconstitutional.
The Congress declared that the government was trying to “defame (and) disenfranchise minorities” and staging an “4D assault on the Constitution”.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, in a symbolic protest, said he was “tearing up the law like Mahatma Gandhi did” with British law in South Africa.