Congress, AIMIM move Supreme Court challenging Waqf Bill
Congress MP Mohammad Jawed and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Friday moved the Supreme Court challenging the 2024 Waqf Amendment Bill, reported Bar and Bench.
In separate petitions, the Opposition MPs claimed the bill was “discriminatory” and “unconstitutional”.
The bill, which seeks to curb the authority of waqf boards and allow greater government control over them, was passed in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, with 128 votes in favour and 95 against. It was passed in the Lok Sabha at around 2 am on Thursday with 288 votes in favour and 232 against.
The Waqf Bill now awaits the president’s assent.
Both Jawed and Owaisi were part of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the bill, according to The Indian Express.
In his petition, Jawed claimed that the bill violates the right to equality, freedom to practice religion, freedom to manage religious affairs, minority rights and right to property guaranteed under the Constitution.
The MP from Bihar’s Kishanganj also stated that the bill discriminates against the Muslim community by “imposing restrictions that are not present in the governance of other religious endowments”.
“For instance, while Hindu and Sikh religious trusts continue to enjoy a degree of self-regulation, the amendments to the Wakf Act, 1995, disproportionately increases state intervention in Waqf affairs,” Jawed was quoted as saying by Bar and Bench.
Owaisi echoed this...
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