NEW DELHI: Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday said that the government does not intend to hurt religious feelings and added that an extensive process was undertaken by the Joint Parliamentary Committee while deliberating on the Waqf Amendment Bill 2025 and Mussalman Waqf Repeal Bill 2024.
Rijiju moved the Waqf Amendment Bill 2025 and Mussalman Waqf Repeal Bill 2024 in Rajya Sabha. This came a day after their passage in Lok Sabha.
Rijiju said, “Our new legislation will have representation from all sects of Muslims in the Waqf board, along with representation of backward classes. We are making it more inclusive,” he said.
The minister shared that of a total of 22 members in the proposed Central Waqf Council, not more than four will be non-Muslims.
“In the Central Waqf, there will be three members of parliament, 10 members from the Muslim community of which minimum two will be women, two former judges from the High Court or Supreme Court. In State Waqf Boards, of 11 members, not more than three will be non-Muslim,” he said.
“The 1976 Waqf Enquiry Report said that all Waqf Boards have been captured by mutawallis and something should be done for it. Audit and account management should be informed. The report stated that Muthawalis were misusing the authority and power and proposed the steps to be taken for improving the functioning of Waqf,” the Minister said.
Rijiju said that the 2006 Sachar Committee report recommended the strengthening of the Waqf board. The report said that while the Waqf lands had the potential to generate Rs 12,000 crore but only Rs 160 crore was generated.
“The Sachar committee in 2006 recommended that the Waqf board should be strengthened and it should be digitized. The report stated that there were 4.9 lakh wakf properties and the annual income was only Rs 160 crore. If 4.9 lakh properties are efficiently managed, by the standards of the then market price, Rs 12,000 crore annual income could be generated,” he added.
The minister recalled that just before implementation of the model code of conduct ahead of the 2014 general elections, on March 5, 2014, the UPA government denotified 123 prime properties and handed them over to the Delhi Waqf Board. These properties were of the Housing and Urban Affairs ministry, he said.
Rijiju said that Waqf has the maximum number of properties in the world. “We have no objections to the properties they have. The objections arise only when the benefit from such properties are not transferred to poor Muslims. If these Waqf properties are better managed then in 3-4 years the lives of crores of poor Muslims will be changed,” the minister said.
He said that the amendment Bill proposed for the prevention of protected monuments and Schedule 5 and 6 lands of tribals from declaration of Waqf property. This means that ASI protected monuments will be excluded from the Waqf’s ambit.