New Delhi: The Joint Parliamentary Committee scrutinising the Waqf (Amendment) Bill on Monday adopted all amendments proposed by the ruling BJP-led NDA members and negated every change moved by opposition members. During the meeting, the ruling party passed 22 amendments in the JPC. All opposition amendments were rejected. The opposition had tabled 44 amendments. But all of them were rejected.
The next meeting of the JPC will be held on January 29. On that day, the report will be accepted and submitted to the Lok Sabha Speaker.
After the meeting of the JPC on Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, one of its members - BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi said, "JPC on Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 was held today in a very democratic manner. The Chairperson's Jagdambika Pal tried to hear everybody out and gave sufficient time for everybody to move the amendment that everybody wished to. There are 44 amendments to the principal Act 1995 that had been proposed by the government which had been tabled before all of us to deliberate upon. 34 sittings have already taken place for deliberating on the entire matter. 108 hours have been dedicated to this job. More than 284 stakeholders have been consulted and their views have been given due importance. As far as today's meeting is concerned, let me tell you that against these 44 amendments, the Opposition part MPs had actually proposed amendments with regard to 43 proposals of the govt. As far as NDA MPs are concerned, they had moved 24 proposals. Every proposal moved either by the Opposition or the Ruling Party was put to debate and voting was done by raising of hand. The voting was mostly 10:16. They were 10 members and we were 16... Today also they started creating a ruckus and the entire Opposition team was led by Kalyan Banerjee. This particular Bill has been really deliberated upon very extensively, very thoroughly. This committee had also gone to a couple of states to hear the organisations which have not been able to come to Delhi. So, I think the entire procedure has been done in a very democratic manner..."
The committee chairman Jagdambika Pal told reporters after the meeting that amendments adopted by the committee will make the law better and more effective.
However, opposition MPs decried the meeting's proceedings and accused Pal of "subverting" the democratic process. "It was a farcical exercise. We were not heard. Pal has acted in a dictatorial manner," TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee told reporters.
Pal rejected the charge, and said the entire exercise was democratic, and the majority view prevailed. One of the more significant amendments proposed by the committee is that the existing Waqf properties cannot be questioned on the grounds of 'Waqf by user', which existed in the current law but will be omitted in the new version, if the properties are being used for religious purposes.
Pal said the amendments moved by the NDA members in 14 of the Bill's clauses have been accepted. Opposition members moved hundreds of amendments in all 44 clauses and all of them were defeated by vote, he added.