AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Friday voiced his vociferous opposition to the Centre’s Waqf (Amendment) Bill, saying the proposed legislation is a direct assault on Muslims as it would snatch away their properties.
Wearing a black armband in response to a call by the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) to protest against the Bill, Owaisi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi aims to target mosques and dargah with the proposed amendment to the law.
“(Prime Minister) Narendra Modi is firing bullets at our chest through the Waqf Bill—targeting our mosques and dargahs,” he said.
Owaisi questioned how non-Muslims could become members of the Waqf Board when only Hindus and Sikhs can be members of temple and gurdwara boards respectively.
“You (Centre) intend to take away the properties of Muslims. This is part of the Hindutva agenda to prevent us from following our Shariat and our religion. We are telling the government that this law is unconstitutional and violates Articles 14, 15, 26, and 29,” he said, adding that Muslims “cannot stay silent” on the Bill.
Owaisi also attacked the BJP’s NDA allies like N Chandrababu Naidu (TDP), Nitish Kumar (JD-U), Chirag Paswan (LJP-Ram Vilas), and Jayant Chaudhary (RLD), saying Muslims would “never forgive” them for “giving permission” to the BJP to attack the Shariat.
Amit Shah says Waqf bill to be reintroduced in current session
Meanwhile, home minister Amit Shah declared that the bill will be reintroduced in the ongoing session of the parliament.
“We will introduce the Waqf Bill in Parliament within this session,” Shah said at the “Times Now Summit 2025”.
He claimed the opposition is misleading Muslims and their rights will not be snatched away. “They are just telling lies after lies,” he added.
“A Bill cannot be above the spirit of the Constitution. We are making it in such a way that its decisions can be challenged in courts. Even government orders are challenged in courts. Laws enacted by us, like the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) were also challenged in courts. Parliament’s decision to scrap Article 370 (of the Constitution) was also challenged,” he said.
With inputs from PTI