Uproar in Indian Parliament Over Contentious Waqf Amendment Bill as Scholars Demand Opposition from Secular Leaders

As the Indian Parliament’s Budget Session commenced, protests erupted in the Lok Sabha (Lower House) over the proposed Waqf (Amendment) Bill, Clarion reported. The opposition, led by the Samajwadi Party (SP), denounced the bill as unconstitutional, leading to the adjournment of the House proceedings.

Asaduddin Owaisi, the chief of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) party, criticized the bill, stating that it aimed to incite hatred against Muslims and was part of a Hindutva agenda to separate them from their religion and seize their properties. Other opposition members, including NCP MP Fauzia Khan and BJD MP Sasmit Patra, also expressed their concerns about the unfairness of the proposed legislation.

In response, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju urged political parties to avoid spreading misinformation about the bill and called for a detailed debate, indicating that the House might extend its sessions to pass the contentious legislation.

Concurrently, prominent Muslim scholars gathered at the Handiwali Mosque in Delhi, demanding that secular political leaders, including Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu, oppose the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024. They claimed that the bill, set to be tabled in Parliament on April 2, aimed to “grab” Waqf properties and was an “attack on Muslim rights.”