New Delhi: The BJP-led central government is set to introduce the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, in the Lok Sabha on Thursday to amend the Waqf Act, 1995. Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju will introduce it. Chaotic scenes are expected to follow in the House as the opposition will resist the Bill’s passage.
Opposition MPs from different political parties protest against the price rise of onions and other vegetables, outside the parliament. As a mark of protest, MPs also wear garlands made of onion as they raise the slogan ‘pyaaj ka daam kam karo’ (reduce the prices of onions).
The bill is also aimed at providing justice to poor Muslims and Muslim women besides freeing Waqf properties from illegal occupation. Some changes to the present Act include ensuring the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims in such bodies.
The amended bill seeks to define the term ‘waqf’ and omit provisions related to the ‘waqf by user’. As per the bill, ‘waqf’ would be defined as waqf by any person who is a practicing Muslim for at least 5 years and has ownership of such property and ensure the creation of Waqf-alal-aulad doesn’t lead to the denial of women’s inheritance rights.
The Waqf Act of 1995 was created to regulate ‘Auqaf’, assets donated and notified as waqf by a ‘wakif’ or the person who dedicates a property for any purpose recognized by Muslim law as religious or charitable.
Under the Waqf Act of 1995, waqf is defined as a property dedicated for religious or charitable purposes. A total of 30 waqf boards in the country control properties spanning more than 8 lakh acres, making them the third-largest owner of real estate in India after the Railways and Defence Ministry.
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