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Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday expressed his strong opposition on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of "interfering" in everything to gain control.
"We are against the Waqf Board Bill because the BJP wants to interfere in everything. They want control everywhere," Yadav said. On Ajmer Dargah's support to Waqf (Amendment) Bill, Akhilesh Yadav suggested BJP's involvement behind that. "BJP can make anyone say, can make anyone do, that's their feat" Yadav said. Syed Naseruddin Chishty, the chairman of the All India Sufi Sajjadanshin Council (AISSC) and successor of the spiritual head of Ajmer Dargah expressed support for reforming the Waqf Board, urging the Muslim community to not be swayed by "emotional provocative statements" made against the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, and believe the official statements of the government on the intentions of the act. "I believe that the existing Waqf Act needs to be changed and Muslims need not be afraid of it. When the government itself is saying in Parliament that his not against the community, and masjids, dargahs will not be seized then we should believe the official statements only," AISSC Chairman told ANI. The Council's chairman told ANI that the government has already clarified that dargahs, masjids under the Waqf board will not be seized, which should be believed by the people, and hoped that after the bill being referred to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), the changes will be good. "The Waqf (Amendment) Bill that the Government is bringing, it had already expressed its intention when they had introduced it, and they referred it to the JPC. The JPC has heard all the parties very patiently and sent a report to government. Hopefully the bill that will come will be good, there should be a discussion on it, and a good bill will be passed," Chishty said. Meanwhile, Congress MP and Waqf Ammendment Bill JPC member Imran Masood come down heavily on Syed Naseruddin Chishty accusing him of "brokering" for BJP. Masood said, "Yeh dalaali band kare BJP ki," on Syed Naseruddin Chishty's statement. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, also called the 'Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development (UMEED) Bill', aims to address key challenges by introducing reforms such as digitisation, enhanced audits, improved transparency, and legal mechanisms to reclaim illegally occupied properties.The Waqf Act of 1995, enacted to regulate Waqf properties, has long been criticised for issues such as mismanagement, corruption, and encroachments. (ANI)
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