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Amid the ongoing Supreme Court hearings on pleas challenging the Waqf (Amendment) Act, BJP leader and Chairperson of the Jammu and Kashmir Waqf Board, Darakhshan Andrabi on Thursday said that implementation of the legislations passed in Parliament cannot be stopped by anyone, however, the doors of judiciary are opened to those having issues with the enacted laws.
"In our democracy, the doors of the Supreme Court are open for everyone... No one can stop the implementation of the things that have been passed in the parliament, but the doors are open for everyone," Andrabi told ANI. The Supreme Court, for the second consecutive day, will hear a batch of petitions challenging the Constitutional validity of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025. The top Court on Wednesday indicated that it may pass an interim order to stay certain key provisions of the recently passed Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, and also expressed concern over violence in West Bengal's Murshidabad district. A three-judge bench of Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justices PV Sanjay Kumar and KV Viswanathan said, "The one thing that is very disturbing is the violence that is taking place. The issue is before the court, and we will decide." The bench didn't pass any order but suggested that it may stay certain provisions, including the inclusion of non-Muslims in Central Waqf Council and Waqf Boards, powers of collectors in deciding dispute over Waqf properties, and provisions on de-notifying properties declared as waqf by courts. CJI Khanna was about to dictate the order, but Solicitor General Tushar Mehta representing Centre and other counsels who were appearing for parties defending the Act said they should be heard before passing the interim order. The bench then posted the matter for further hearing on Thursday at 2 pm. CJI had observed that "government cannot rewrite history" through the changes brought in by the amendments to Waqf law while referring to the scope under the new Act to de-notify properties declared as Waqf long ago. "When a public trust is declared to be a Waqf 100 or 200 years ago... suddenly you say it is being taken over by the Waqf board and declared otherwise," said the bench. The top court had questioned the government on how Waqf-by-user can be disallowed, as many will not have the requisite documents to get such Waqfs registered. (ANI)
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