Waqf Bill: The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, seeks to improve the functioning of Waqf properties, address complexities, ensure transparency and introduce technology-driven management.
Waqf Bill: Union Home Minister Amit Shah explained in detail on the necessity of amending the existing Waqf law, stating that the 2013 law was made ‘extreme’ for appeasement ahead of the parliamentary elections. He asserted that had those changes not been made, the current bill might not have been needed.
Making an intervention in Lok Sabha during a debate on the Waqf Bill, Shah clarified in that non-Muslim members of the Waqf Board will have no role in managing religious affairs, asserting that such allegations were baseless and misleading. He reiterated that the bill aims to ensure transparency and prevent mismanagement of Waqf properties.
Why was an amendment necessary in existing Waqf law?
Speaking in the House, the Home Minister said, “If the amendment to the Waqf Act had not been made in 2013, there would have been no need to introduce this bill. With the 2014 elections approaching, the Waqf law was made extreme overnight in 2013. As a result, the Congress government handed over 123 VVIP properties in Lutyens’ Delhi to the Waqf just 25 days before the elections.”
Shah further stated that the Delhi Waqf Board declared Northern Railway’s land as Waqf property. “Waqf came to own 12 villages covering an area of 250 hectares. Additionally, 400 acres of land belonging to the 1,500-year-old Tiruchendurai temple in Tamil Nadu was declared as Waqf property. The Karnataka Manipatti Committee’s report also revealed that 29,000 acres of Waqf land had been rented out for business purposes,” he added.
He said that the court had to intervene to halt the confiscation of 602 acres of land in Bengaluru. “Additionally, land worth ₹500 crore was rented out to five-star hotels for just Rs 12,000 per month. This money rightfully belongs to the poor Muslims of the country, not for the wealthy to exploit,” Shah added.
“You (Opposition) would break this country…Through this House, I would like to tell Muslims of the country that not even one non-Muslim would come into your Waqf. This Act has no such provision. But what would the Waqf Board and Waqf Council do? To catch the people selling off Waqf properties and drive them out, to catch those who lease off their properties for 100 years in the name of Waqf. The income of Waqf is dropping, the income with which we have to do development for minority and push them forward, that money is being stolen. Waqf Board and Council will catch that,” the Home Minister said.
Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025
Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju tabled the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. The Bill seeks to improve the functioning of Waqf properties, address complexities, ensure transparency and introduce technology-driven management.
The bill was earlier presented in the Lok Sabha in August last year and a Joint Parliamentary Committee, headed by BJP member Jagdambika Pal, examined it. The bill seeks to amend the Act of 1995. The Bill seeks to improve the administration and management of waqf properties in India. It aims to overcome the shortcomings of the previous act and enhance the efficiency of Waqf boards, improving the registration process and increasing the role of technology in managing waqf records.
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