Reacting to the Waqf Amendment Bill, which was introduced in Lok Sabha on Thursday, the National President of the Sufi Islamic Board, Mansoor Khan said that, given the misuse of the Waqf Board over the past 70 years, the Sufi Islamic Board had submitted suggestions to address these issues.
Khan’s comments suggest that the Board aims to reform the Waqf system and prevent future misuse
“The manner in which Waqf Board has been misused in last 70 years, we gave a few suggestions to the Waqf Board in wake of that. Our primary suggestion was that it should be taken out of the Minority Ministry and brought under the Home Ministry so that all the encroachments can be removed and if something misuse happens, the Home Ministry can intervene directly, file cases and prosecute…The Bill states that it would come under Collector. There is no issue, things will be better than before,” Mansoor Khan told ANI.
#WATCH | Mumbai, Maharashtra: On the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, National President of Sufi Islamic Board, Mansoor Khan says, "The manner in which Waf Board has been misused in last 70 years, we gave a few suggestions to the Waqf Board in wake of that. Our primary suggestion was that… pic.twitter.com/53ZCSmybDv
— ANI (@ANI) August 8, 2024
The Waqf Amendment Bill aims to amend the Waqf Act, 1995, which governs the management of Waqf properties (properties donated for religious or charitable purposes) in India. The bill seeks to strengthen the administration of Waqf boards and prevent misuse of Waqf properties.
On the Opposition’s objection, he said, “If they are opposing it, they should tell how much welfare for Muslims was done in 70 years by using Waqf land?…If they can show it, it will be justified. But if nothing has been done, why are they opposing it?…”
Meanwhile, AIMIM Chief and Hyderabad MP, Asaduddin Owaisi targeted the Centre over the Waqf (Amendment) Bill and said that there are a lot of dangerous sections and it is not legislation but something to bulldoze Waqf and finish Muslims.
“Before the introduction of the Bill, we had sent a notice to the Speaker – under Rule 72 – that we are against the introduction of this Bill. We believe that this Bill violates the principles of Articles 14, 15 and 25. This Bill violates the basic structure of the Constitution. It especially violates judicial independence and separations of powers. You want to snatch away the mosques that are being claimed by the RSS, snatch away the dargahs that are being claimed by right-wing Hindutva organisations. By removing the Waqf by User, you are asking them to bring the documents. If the 400-year-old document is not there, what changes will you make?” Owaisi asked.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which amends the Waqf Act, 1995, was introduced by Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju.
The bill seeks to omit section 40 relating to the powers of the Board to decide if a property is waqf property, provide for filing of accounts of waqf by mutawallis 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 ninety days.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
