During a session in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, Union Minister and Janata Dal (United) MP Rajiv Ranjan Singh ‘Lalan’ forcefully defended the new Waqf Board Bill against opposition criticisms. Singh argued that the bill is being misrepresented as anti-Muslim by opposition members. Addressing the uproar from the opposition, Singh maintained that he would continue to voice his position on the bill regardless of opposition support or dissent. Defending the bill, he said, “Several members are making it sound as if the amendment in Waqf Board law is anti-Muslim. How is it anti-Muslim?”
The Union minister also criticised opposition MPs for drawing parallels between the Waqf Board and temples, questioning their understanding of the differences between these institutions. “Here example of Ayodhya is being given… Can you not differentiate between a temple and an institution? This is not an attempt to interfere with mosques. This law is for the institution, to make it transparent…” PTI reported him as saying.
Defending the Waqf Board Bill in the Lok Sabha, Singh asserted that the legislation aims to enhance transparency within the Waqf Board, which was established by law. Singh emphasised that the bill is intended to ensure that no institution operates in an autocratic manner and that transparency is maintained. He rejected claims that the bill seeks to interfere with mosques, underscoring that the government’s goal is to introduce a law that promotes institutional accountability.
Singh also criticised the Congress party, accusing it of having no credibility on minority issues. Taking a jibe at the Congress over the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, he asked, “Who killed thousands of Sikhs”. “The Bill should come and transparency should be brought,” he said. Singh’s comments were a sharp retort to opposition claims and highlighted ongoing tensions over the bill’s implications.
His remarks were made in response to opposition claims that the new Waqf Board Bill is anti-Muslim. Many opposition MPs, including those from Congress, had called for the bill’s withdrawal, labelling it discriminatory.
Singh countered these allegations, asserting that the bill aims solely to enhance transparency within the Waqf Board, which has been established by law. He argued that the legislation is not anti-Muslim and criticised the opposition for attempting to incite communal tensions by framing the bill as a threat to minority interests.
The bill to amend the law governing Waqf boards proposes far-reaching changes in the Wakf Act, 1995, including ensuring the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims in such bodies. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill also aims at renaming the act as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995.
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