Waqf bill: The JPC report will be presented in Parliament today, opposition makes serious allegations

The report of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) headed by Jagdambika Pal on the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024 will be tabled in Parliament today. As per the agenda, BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, along with Sanjay Jaiswal, will present the report along with the record of evidence given before the committee.

The report will be presented before the Speaker.

Earlier, Jagdambika Pal met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday to submit the final report of the committee on the bill (Waqf Amendment Bill 2024). He told news agency ANI on Wednesday,

"We have accepted the report and the amended bill. For the first time, we have included a clause that states that the benefits of waqf should go to the marginalized people, the poor, women, and orphans. Tomorrow we will present this report to the Speaker."

Opposition made allegations

BJP MP Pal (Jagdambika Pal) also said that there were 44 clauses before us, out of which amendments were proposed by the members in 14 clauses. We voted with a majority and then these amendments were accepted. The JPC accepted the draft report and the revised amended bill on January 29.

However, opposition leaders submitted their dissent notes on the report. Asaduddin Owaisi said that his dissent note has been deleted. Owaisi claimed that parts of his dissent note on the JPC report were deleted.

Owaisi said,

"I had submitted a detailed dissent note to the JPC against the Waqf Bill. Shockingly, parts of my notes were edited without my knowledge. The deleted sections were not controversial, they only stated facts."

Owaisi alleged that JPC chairman Jagdambika Pal was suppressing the voice of the opposition even though they have 'got the report they wanted'.

The Waqf Act has been criticized.

The Waqf Act 1995, enacted to regulate waqf properties, has long been criticized for issues such as mismanagement, corruption, and encroachment.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 aims to address these challenges by introducing reforms such as digitization, better audits, improved transparency, and legal mechanisms to take back illegally occupied properties.