Joint Parliamentary Committee meets on Waqf (Amendment) Bill , hears experts and stakeholders

New Delhi [India], September 19 (ANI): A meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024 is being held at the Parliament Library Building in the capital on Thursday.

Several members of the committee, including the chairman Jagdambika Pal, Asaduddin Owaisi, etc., were present in the meeting.

In the meeting, the committee listened to the views or suggestions of some experts and stakeholders, including Prof. Faizan Mustafa, Vice Chancellor, Chanakya National Law University, Patna; Pasmanda Muslim Mahaaz; and All Indian Muslim Personal Law Board, on the Waqf Amendment Bill.

Notably, the Joint Parliamentary Committee will also conduct a meeting on September 20 where it will hear the suggestions of All India Sajjadanashin Council, Ajmer, Muslim Rashtriya Manch, Delhi and Bharat First, Delhi, on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024.

Earlier, the meeting scheduled for September 18 was postponed after some members requested for the same.

Speaking to reporters, Jagdambika Pal on Wednesday, said, “The meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee was to be held on 18, 19 and 20 September. But some of our members said that Ganesh Chaturthi is on the 17th and Eid-e-Milad procession is being taken out in Maharashtra today. Due to this, today’s meeting has been postponed. The meeting will be held on 19 and 20 September as scheduled.”

The fourth meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to examine the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2024, was held on September 6.

During the meeting, senior officials of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) made a presentation before the Joint Parliamentary Committee. Several stakeholders, including the Zakat Foundation of India and the Telangana Waqf Board, put forth their views, suggestions, and oral evidence on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024.

Eariler on September 13, a group of Muslim Social Workers and Islamic Scholars during a meeting in Delhi expressed their support to the government, emphasising that doubting the government’s intentions is not appropriate.

Speaking to ANI, Islamic Scholar Mufti Wajahat Qasmi said that the meeting was called to remove the confusion created by some political parties against the government, saying that the land of Muslims will be snatched away.

“The government doesn’t need to be always against us. Waqf’s property is Muslim’s property. In the last 70 years, none of the people other than Muslims has become the chairman of the Waqf board; then who has captured it? It’s not correct to say that the government is always wrong. First, read the bill. It is not correct to say that whatever the government is doing is always wrong,” Qasmi said.