Waqf Act Amendment Bill: The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 is scheduled to be introduced in the Lok Sabha by Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday.
New Delhi: The BJP-led government is set to introduce the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, aiming to amend the Waqf Act of 1995. The bill intends to address issues related to the powers of State Waqf Boards, the registration and survey of waqf properties, and the removal of encroachments.
Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju is scheduled to introduce the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 in the Lok Sabha.
Sources indicate that the Samajwadi Party plans to oppose the bill in Parliament.
The government has decided to withdraw the Waqf Properties (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Bill, 2014 (file).
New Delhi: The BJP-led government is set to introduce the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, aiming to amend the Waqf Act of 1995. The bill seeks to address issues related to the powers of State Waqf Boards, the registration and survey of waqf properties, and the removal of encroachments. Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju is scheduled to present the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 in the Lok Sabha.
Sources indicate that the Samajwadi Party plans to oppose the bill in Parliament.
The government has also decided to withdraw the Waqf Properties (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Bill, 2014, which was introduced in the Rajya Sabha in February 2014 during the Congress-led UPA government. This bill is listed for withdrawal from the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
In addition to introducing the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, Rijiju will also present The Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2024, which seeks to repeal the Mussalman Wakf Act of 1923.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, proposes renaming the Waqf Act of 1995 as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development Act, 1995. It aims to clearly define “waqf” as a waqf created by any person practicing Islam for at least five years and owning the relevant property, ensuring that the creation of Waqf-alal-aulad does not deny inheritance rights to women.
The bill also proposes omitting provisions related to “waqf by user,” assigning the functions of the Survey Commissioner to the Collector or an officer of similar rank for surveying waqf properties, and ensuring a broad-based composition of the Central Waqf Council and State Waqf Boards, including representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims.
According to the statement of objects and reasons, the bill seeks to establish a separate Board of Auqaf for Boharas and Aghakhanis. It also aims to ensure representation of Shia, Sunni, Bohra, Agakhani, and other backward classes among Muslim communities, streamline the registration of waqfs through a central portal and database, and provide a detailed procedure for property mutation as per revenue laws with due notice to all concerned before recording any property as waqf property.
Additionally, the bill proposes omitting Section 40, which relates to the Board’s power to decide if a property is waqf property, and introduces a requirement for mutawallis to file accounts of waqf properties to the Board through a central portal for better oversight. It also aims to reform the Tribunal structure, introducing two members, and allowing for appeals against Tribunal orders to be filed in the High Court within ninety days.
