Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], April 2 (ANI): AIMIM National spokesperson Waris Pathan on Wednesday slammed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, calling it unconstitutional and a violation of the right to equality and freedom to manage religious affairs.
Article 14 of the Constitution guarantees the right to equality before the law, Article 25 is the right to freedom of religion and Article 26 ensures the freedom to manage religious affairs.
He also claimed that the BJP does not have a majority to pass the bill in the Lok Sabha and needs support from Chandrababu Naidu, Nitish Kumar, Chirag Paswan, and Jayant Chaudhary. He stated that if these individuals support the bill, India’s Muslims will never forgive them.
Speaking to ANI, Pathan said, “This Bill is unconstitutional. It is in total violation of Articles 14, 25 and 26. This Bill is unconstitutional. In Lok Sabha, the BJP does not have the majority. If they want to pass the bill, they will need support from Chandrababu Naidu, Nitish Kumar, Chirag Paswan and Jayant Chaudhary, and if these people support the bill, India’s Muslims will never forgive them.”
Pathan questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi is adamant on bringing this bill and making it a law when Muslims of the country don’t want this bill.
“We’ve been saying it since day one, this is a black law, withdraw it. Now, if the government won’t listen, we’ll protest within the bounds of the Constitution. Earlier, the Muslim Personal Board said whoever has objections to the bill should file their objections, and over a crore people did so. When the Muslims of the country don’t want this bill to pass, don’t want it to become a law, then why is Modi so adamant on bringing this bill and making it a law?” Pathan said.
On Wednesday, the Lok Sabha took up for consideration the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, which incorporates suggestions made by the Joint Parliamentary Committee that examined the bill tabled in Parliament in August last year. The House also took up the Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2024, for consideration and passing.
Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju moved the two bills for passing in the House.
Congress member KC Venugopal accused the government of trying to bulldoze the bill, saying that they had not been given enough time to move their amendments.”You are bulldozing the legislation, you need to give time for the amendments, their no time for amendments,” he said.
Rijiju told the media earlier that the bill is in the interest of the country.
“Today is a historic day, and today, the Waqf Amendment Bill will be introduced in the Lok Sabha. This bill is being introduced in the interest of the country. Not only crores of Muslims but the whole country will support it. Those who are opposing it are doing so for political reasons,” he said.
The bill was earlier presented in the Lok Sabha in August last year, and a Joint Parliamentary Committee, headed by BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, examined it.
The bill seeks to amend the Act of 1995 and seeks to improve the administration and management of waqf properties in India. It aims to overcome the shortcomings of the previous act and enhance the efficiency of Waqf boards, improving the registration process and increasing the role of technology in managing Waqf records. (ANI)
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