Top

Mehbooba Mufti seeks AP, Bihar CMs’ help for stopping Waqf amendments

Mehbooba Mufti urges Andhra & Bihar CMs to oppose the Waqf Amendment Bill, calling it divisive & harmful to Muslims

Srinagar: Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and leader of regional People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti has sought the help of chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Bihar on the Waqf Amendment Bill which has been termed as being “deeply divisive” and harmful to the interests of the country’s Muslims by her.

The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) had earlier this week cleared the Waqf Amendment Bill after incorporating all the 14 amendments proposed by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) members, and negated every change moved by the opposition MPs.

Ms. Mufti has in a joint letter sent to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and his counterpart in Bihar Nitish Kumar urged them to intervene and prevent this bill from being passed by the Parliament as such a passage will cause “damage to the national unity and communal harmony” in the country. “You have always been staunch believers in our Constitution and have consistently championed the spirit of Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb (distinctive, syncretic Hindu-Muslim culture). Today, as key members of the NDA, you are uniquely positioned to influence this matter and prevent this onslaught,” the letter flashed to them on Friday says.

It says the proposed bill comes at a time when, for the past decade, Muslims have been “systematically disenfranchised, disempowered and marginalised politically, socially and economically.” It adds that perhaps what is more concerning is the utter disregard to the misgivings raised by the opposition parties in the form of dissent notes submitted to the JPC.

The PDP president has asserted, “The exercise of consultation seems farcical without any genuine efforts to consult the community most affected by this unconstitutional, unconscionable and authoritarian bill.” She has alleged that dressed as a reform of the Waqf owned properties across the country its true objective is to “undermine the very foundation of the Waqf Act (meant to) protect and preserve properties dedicated to the social and economic upliftment of Muslims for religious and charitable purposes.”

The former chief minister has claimed that each proposed amendment in the Waqf Bill “not only contradicts the interests of the Muslim community but also constitutes a direct assault on the fundamental rights guaranteed by our Constitution.”

Ms. Mufti has further alleged that this “deeply divisive” bill is a clear manifestation of the majoritarianism that has “fuelled bigotry and the marginalisation of the Muslims since 2024” and that “it strikes at the heart of the very idea of India- the India that strives on its core values of diversity, pluralism, and peaceful coexistence.”

She has lamented that the essence of Mahatma Gandhi’s vision for India is being altered, undermining the secular fabric that binds this nation together.

J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had on Tuesday while responding to a query on the fate of the Waqf Amendment Bill and Uttarakhand becoming the first state of the country to implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) called for patience and due process.

“No law is being implemented at the moment. The JPC is working on the matter, and the debate is still underway. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has presented his views to the committee. Let the committee complete its work, and after that, there will be a debate in Parliament,” he had told reporters here.

On the UCC implementation in Uttarakhand, he had said, “Let them proceed with their plans. They may do what they want, but the final decision will be taken in Parliament. It won’t be decided by individual states or territories.”

A delegation of Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU) Jammu and Kashmir, an amalgam of religious organisations headed by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq had on January 24 met the JPC on The Waqf (Amendment) Bill-2024 in New Delhi and conveyed its views and suggestions on the proposed bill.

A memorandum submitted to the Chairman JPC by the delegation voiced its “serious and deep concern” on the proposed amendments to the Waqf Act. “We believe that these amendments are completely against the interests of the Muslim community and also violate the universally accepted fundamental rights of communities,” it said, adding that the Waqf properties are personal properties dedicated by Muslims in the name of God for the benefit of their society and to help the underprivileged’.

The memorandum further stated that such religio-social institutions warrant least interference from the state and that the government proposed amendments represent a significant threat to the autonomy and functioning of this institution.

Next Story