All opposition members of the parliamentary committee on the Waqf Amendment Bill were suspended for a day on Friday amid sustained protests and allegations against chairperson Jagdambika Pal of obstructing the proceedings. The suspended members are Kalyan Banerjee, Mohammad Javed, A Raja, Asaduddin Owaisi, Naseer Hussain, Mohibullah, Mohammad Abdullah, Arvind Sawant, Nadeem-ul Haq, Imran Masood.
BJP member Nishikant Dubey moved a proposal to suspend the opposition members, which was accepted by the committee.
BJP member Aparajita Sarangi claimed that the conduct of the opposition members was “disgusting” as they were continuously creating ruckus during the meeting and using unparliamentary language against Pal. The parliamentary committee meeting began on a stormy note, with opposition members claiming they were not being given enough time to study the changes proposed in the draft bill.
The committee members discussed among themselves before calling Kashmir religious chief Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, which turned into a ruckus when opposition leaders claimed that the BJP was quick to accept the report on the Waqf Amendment Bill keeping in mind the Delhi elections. Is insisting on.
Due to heated debate during the meeting, the proceedings had to be adjourned for some time. The delegation led by Mirwaiz appeared before the committee after the second meeting.
Trinamool member Kalyan Banerjee and Congress member Naseer Hussain walked out of the meeting and told reporters that the committee proceedings had become a “farce”. He demanded that the meeting scheduled for January 27 be postponed to January 30 or 31 for clause-by-clause examination of the proposed amendments.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 was sent to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on August 8, 2024 after it was introduced in the Lok Sabha by Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju. It is noteworthy that the objective of the bill is to amend the Waqf Act, 1995, so as to address the problems and challenges faced in the regulation and management of Waqf properties.
