The Supreme Court has fixed a hearing for May 20 on petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Waqf Amendment Act, 2025. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R. Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih will see if any interim relief needs to be granted on provisions relating to the status of Waqf property and the inclusion of non Muslim in Waqf councils and boards.
This is the first occasion that the matter is coming for hearing before CJI Gavai’s bench after the previous bench headed by former CJI Sanjiv Khanna deferred the hearing on May 5 on the ground of his forthcoming retirement. The new bench has given two hours each to the petitioners as well as the Centre, which is represented by the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, to argue over the sole basis of whether a temporary stay is called for or not.
While the proceedings, the Centre assured not to de-notify any such Waqf properties, including the ones deemed as ‘Waqf-by-user’, and not make any appointments to the Central Waqf Council and Waqf Boards. The Supreme Court noted this dedication, and the bench ruled that the assurance will be sustained throughout the interim stage of the hearing.
“We will not get into the merits of the whole Act at this point in time but only consider the interim measures that may be called for,” CJI Gavai said, highlighting the time-bound nature of the task ahead.
In addition, other petitioners pressed on to the court seeking to have them take on petitions against the earlier Waqf Act of 1995, which is now repealed by the 2025 act. But the bench did not agree with those requests as it said, “How could we allow the challenge to the 1995 Act when we are already looking the 2025 Act?”.
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