Smriti Irani dubs Waqf amendment ‘need of the hour’ for Muslim community

Smriti Irani dubs Waqf amendment ‘need of the hour’ for Muslim community

For former Union Minister Smriti Irani, amendment of the Waqf Act is the ‘need of the hour’ for Muslim community.

The Bill to amend the law governing Waqf boards proposes changes in the 1995 Act, including ensuring representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims in such bodies.

Senior BJP leader Smriti Irani has appreciated the introduction of an amended Waqf Bill and dubbed it ‘need of the hour’ for Muslims. The bill introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday spurred wrath
in the Opposition ranks. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju however insisted that the changes did not interfere with religious freedom or violate any provisions of the Constitution.

Speaking to a news agency, the former Union Minister voiced that she would like to express her gratitude to the government of India and PM Modi for the introduction of this landmark Bill in the Parliament.

Earlier this year, Smriti had lost her Amethi Lok Sabha seat to Congress leader Kishori Lal Sharma by a margin of more than 1.5 lakh votes. Speculative reports have broached the possibility of the actor-turned-politician taking over the BJP leadership following JP Nadda joining Modi 3.0 Cabinet.

The new Bill renames the Waqf Act from 1995 as the ‘Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act’. It seeks to scrap a section relating to the powers of the board to decide if a property is Waqf property and streamlines the registration of Waqfs through a central portal and database.

It also provides for a broad-based composition of the Central Waqf Council and the state Waqf boards and ensures the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims in such bodies. The bill also proposes the establishment of a separate board for the Boharas and Aghakhanis.

Opposition parties including the Congress, DMK, NCP, Trinamool Congress and AIMIM strongly opposed the introduction of the bill, saying its provisions were against federalism and the constitutional provisions. While some members demanded the withdrawal of the bill, many suggested that should be sent to a standing committee.

News Edit K.V.Raman