Amid huge ruckus, all the Opposition MPs that are part of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, have been suspended from Friday’s sitting.
The suspended MPs include Mohammad Jawaid, Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Kalyan Banerjee, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader A Raja, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi and Nasir Hussain, Samajwadi Party (SP) leaders Mohibbullah Nadvi, M. Abdullah, Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Arvind Sawant, Nadimul Haque, and Congress’ Imran Masood.
“What is going on is an undeclared emergency,” Banerjee asserted while referring to the happenings inside the JPC meeting. He said that the subject and dates for the meeting were changed after they landed in Delhi for the meet. The TMC MP accused the government of “hurrying” owing to the upcoming Assembly polls in the national capital, which are scheduled to be held on February 5.
“We had a tour till January 21. They had given the notice at night after the tour that the meeting would happen on January 24 and 25. Right then, A Raja and others requested the Chairman to postpone the meeting to January 30, 31. He refused to hear us. All of a sudden, we got the notice that the amendment had to be given by January 22, 4:00 PM,” he said.
“It was decided that a clause-by-clause discussion would happen. When we landed here yesterday night, they changed the subject, scheduling the meeting for January 27. We requested multiple times saying that it was not possible to hold the meeting on the 27th. What is going on is an undeclared emergency. It is politically motivated. They are hurrying because of (Assembly) elections in Delhi. They don’t respect the Opposition,” he added.
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Nishikant Dubey accused the Opposition of creating a “ruckus” during the JPC meeting, saying that their conduct was against parliamentary democracy. He informed that the next meeting will happen on January 27 and submission to the Speaker will happen on January 29.
“It is the Opposition, especially Asaduddin Owaisi, who said that representatives from Jammu and Kashmir have not been heard and this is why we invited Mirwaiz Umar Farooq. The Chairman postponed the meeting to hold a discussion clause-by-clause, for the same reason, on the Opposition’s suggestion. The Opposition created a ruckus before Mirwaiz and it is against parliamentary democracy. The meeting will now happen on January 27, a note of dissent will be presented on January 28 and we will submit to the Speaker on January 29,” Dubey told ANI.
Earlier in the day, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq of Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema on Friday expressed hopes that the decision regarding the Waqf issue won’t be made in haste such that Muslims in the country feel disempowered. He said that the Waqf board issue remains important since it is connected to the future of Muslims. He said that they have prepared a memorandum and plan to discuss their concerns in a step-by-step manner.
Jagdambika Pal, Chairman of the JPC, on Friday, said that a meeting has been scheduled on January 29 for the final adoption of the clauses, which will be discussed in detail on January 27. He had said that the JPC members were supposed to hear the suggestions from a delegation led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.
The Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill is to submit its report during the Budget session. The term of the committee was extended during the winter session of Parliament.
The Waqf Act of 1995, enacted to regulate Waqf properties, has long been criticised for issues such as mismanagement, corruption, and encroachments.
The Budget session of Parliament will commence on January 31 and continue till April 4, with the Union Budget to be presented on February 1.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, aims to address these challenges by introducing reforms such as digitisation, enhanced audits, improved transparency, and legal mechanisms to reclaim illegally occupied properties.
