Calling for a probe into the conduct of Bharatiya Janata Party MP Nishikant Dubey, the All India Pasmanda Muslim Mahaz has said that attempts have been made to tarnish the image of the Muslim community in the name of giving suggestions to the joint parliamentary committee scrutinising the 2024 Waqf Amendment Bill, The Indian Express reported on Monday.
The group, which represents the interests of Dalit and other backward caste Muslims, was responding to Dubey’s remarks last month that an investigation should be conducted into the source of the nearly 1.2 crore feedback submissions received by the parliamentary committee on the bill.
Dubey, the Lok Sabha member from Jharkhand’s Godda, is part of the parliamentary committee.
In a letter to the parliamentary committee chairperson Jagdambika Pal, Dubey said that the probe should cover the possible roles of fundamentalist organisations, individuals such as preacher and televangelist Zakir Naik and foreign entities such as Pakistan’s intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence and China.
On October 3, All India Pasmanda Muslim chief and former Rajya Sabha MP Ali Ansari wrote to Pal, saying that no attempts should be made by any member of the parliamentary committee to create doubts about its confidentiality, according to The Indian Express.
“We saw a statement by a committee member [Dubey] that the JCP [joint parliamentary committee] had received about 1.25 crore suggestions,” the letter said. “There was a demand for an investigation of the origin of suggestions as some of them came from those suspected to have a ‘radical Islamic image and alleged links to the ISI [Inter-Services Intelligence].”’
Ansari added: “We want to know on what grounds the member made such a statement.”
He also asked Pal to fix a date, time and place for the All India Pasmanda Muslim Mahaz to submit its suggestions and objections on the bill.
Ansari also told The Indian Express that Dubey’s conduct must be probed. “We understand Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set up the panel on the Waqf Bill with noble intentions to consider views from various sections,” he said.
On August 8, the Waqf Amendment Bill was sent to a parliamentary committee for scrutiny following objections from Opposition parties after the draft legislation was introduced in the Lok Sabha.
The panel had sought written suggestions from the public, experts, non-governmental organisations and institutions, among others, on the draft legislation. It received more than 1.2 crore email responses from across the country, both for and against the bill, according to reports.
The bill proposed to amend 44 sections of the 1995 Waqf Act.
Features of the proposed amendment include ensuring the verification of land before a board announces it as a Waqf property, and requirements for the funds received by the boards to be used for the welfare of widows, divorcees and orphans as suggested by the government.
A waqf is a property given for a religious, educational or charitable cause by Muslims. In India, waqfs are governed under the Waqf Act. Each state has a Waqf Board led by a legal entity who is vested with the power to acquire, hold and transfer a property. The Act was last amended in 2013.
“Just before the change in political power in 2014, the Waqf (Amendment) Act of 2013 was passed in Parliament,” the letter said. “The concept of Waqf existed from the time when there was no power of pen, paper and law. Properties were donated as part of religious procedures.”
The letter said that there was a need for reform after the 2013 amendment to the Act. However, an attempt to change the entire structure of an institution did not count as reform, it added. “It is seen as an attempt to change the structure to suit one’s political, social and economic interests.”
There was a “clear intention to limit Muslim representation” to even less than 50%, the letter said, according to The Indian Express.
“Political power wants to take control of the CEO’s post and is insisting on nominating members instead of electing them,” it said. “The nomination of members by the state governments in Waqf Boards of the state leads to government interference in the management of Waqf properties.”
Buy an annual Scroll Membership to support independent journalism and get special benefits.
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!