Indian Muslim community rejects Waqf Amendment Bill

The Muslim community in India has expressed deep concern and disappointment over the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2024, which was recently introduced in Parliament.

The bill seeks to amend the Waqf Act, 1995, and grant more powers to the district administration to manage Waqf properties.

Mohammad Fazlur Rahim Mujaddidi, General Secretary of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), stated that the Muslim community categorically rejects the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, deeming it discriminatory, communally driven, and a clear infringement on the constitutional rights of Muslim residents.

Yasoob Abbas, General Secretary of the All India Shia Personal Law Board (AISPLB), termed the bill unacceptable and announced plans to challenge it in the Supreme Court if it is passed.

Maulana Yasoob Abbas said that the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) ignored his opinion. He warned that the bill could cause significant damage to Waqf properties, as it grants all administrative powers to the district administration, district magistrate (DM), and commissioner.

Dr. Rehan Akhtar, assistant professor at Aligarh Muslim University and religious leader, said that since the introduction of the Waqf Amendment Bill, Muslims have feared that their community’s properties will be tampered with or seized.

Dr. Rehan Akhtar expressed hope that the fear among Muslims regarding the Waqf Amendment Bill will be alleviated and that a law should be enacted to prevent encroachment and tampering with Waqf properties.

The opposition alliance has termed the bill a move to disenfranchise minorities.

Gaurav Gogoi of the Congress said that the government’s goal is to “defame” and “disenfranchise” the nation’s minorities, while Akhilesh Yadav, the leader of the Samajwadi Party, said that this bill would be the BJP’s “waterloo.”

Congressman KC Venugopal questioned whether the government would establish a distinct division to determine who is a five-year practicing Muslim. DMK’s A Raja challenged the government’s assertion that the Bill incorporated all recommendations of the JPC.

The opposition INDIA group said that the Waqf bill is an assault on the fundamental framework of the Constitution and that its goal is to “polarize” and divide the nation along religious lines.

The opposition MPs stated during the Lok Sabha’s debate on “The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and The Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2024” that the government is attempting to conceal its shortcomings with this bill, and that even though the NDA allies supported it, they were not pleased with it.

The Bill’s clause stating that only a practicing Muslim who has been a member for five years may establish a Waqf property was also questioned by the INDIA bloc’s MPs.

Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Sanghresh Nyas President Dinesh has written a letter in his blood and demanded that the country’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi should build hospitals, schools, colleges, and police headquarters for the public on Waqf Board properties.