Three Muslim Organisations support Waqf Amendment Bill at Parliamentary Panel meeting
- In Reports
- 07:04 PM, Sep 21, 2024
- Myind Staff
Three Muslim organisations, including one affiliated with the RSS, supported the proposed changes to the Waqf law during a parliamentary panel meeting on Friday. This happened despite heated exchanges between the NDA and opposition members, sources said.
Three Muslim organisations—the All India Sufi Sajjadanashin Council, the RSS-affiliated Rashtriya Muslim Manch, and the NGO Bharat First—each gave separate presentations to the Joint Committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill. During these presentations, some opposition members tried to point out flaws in their statements.
Naresh Mhaske, a member of the Shiv Sena, reportedly told opposition members that they should be willing to listen to different viewpoints. This suggestion sparked a short argument between the NDA and the opposition. Some opposition members wondered whether the Sufi Shah Malang sect, made up of fakirs, also formed part of the Muslim community. The Committee plans to visit Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Bangalore from September 26 to October 1 to meet with different stakeholders in those cities.
In their meetings, opposition members clearly stated that they would not accept certain proposals. These include removing the waqf user provision from the law, allowing the district collector to decide whether a property belongs to waqf or the government, abolishing waqf tribunals, and including non-Muslims in waqf councils.
Under the leadership of the Ajmer sharif Dargah's patron, the All India Sufi Sajjadanashin Council (AISSC) called for the creation of a distinct dargah board, akin to the ones proposed for the Aghakhani and Bohra waqfs in the Bill. The creation of a dargah board, according to the AISSC, is essential for defending the rights of Sajjadanashins and Muttawallis as well as the properties of dargahs, masjids, khanqahs, imambadas, and qabrastans.
In addition, the AISSC asked the Committee for clarification regarding reports that Section 3C of the Bill would confiscate the properties of masjids, dargahs, khanqahs, imambadas, and qabrastans. The AISSC representatives were given the assurance by Committee Chairman Jagdambika Pal that the bill does not contain any such provisions.
Three of the fakirs who made up the Muslim Rashtriya Manch representatives also insisted on the formation of a separate waqf board for the Sufishah Malang community, which is predominantly made up of fakirs and is an Indian branch of Islam that does not have foreign roots. They stated that the Sufishah Malang sect had over 3.75 lakh dargahs, khanqahs, and mazhars dispersed throughout the nation that needed to be protected.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, according to the NGO Bharat First, is a landmark piece of legislation that has the potential to completely transform how registered waqf properties are managed throughout the nation. It claimed that in spite of having substantial financial and land power, the waqf boards have not been able to convert this into substantial socioeconomic gains for the Muslim community. The NGO claimed that inadequate documentation, encroachments, and a lack of supervision have made it difficult to manage waqf properties effectively.
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