On Wednesday, opposition MPs boycotted the eighth meeting of the JPC on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill. The MPs alleged that JPC Chairperson Jagdambika Pal wanted to wrap up the proceedings by the November 29 deadline and table the draft report in the Lok Sabha without completing due process.
All opposition parties have boycotted this decision of Pal. Our demand is to extend the JPC deadline.
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi said – Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla had hinted that the committee could be extended, but it seems that a 'big minister' is directing the action of Jagdambika Pal.
AAP MP Sanjay Singh said, Speaker assured us that he will extend the time of JPC, but now he said that the draft report is ready to be submitted. Pal did not listen to Delhi Government, Jammu and Kashmir Government, Punjab Government, UP Government.
What else did opposition MPs say? YSRCP MP V Vijayasai Reddy said – All parties not in alliance with BJP wanted JPC expansion, but Pal asked to complete their work. So that the report can be presented in the Lok Sabha on November 29.
Asaduddin Owaisi said – the order is that the report should be given on 29th (November). How can we give it, due process should be followed which has not been done.
Most importantly, this committee has not visited Bihar and West Bengal. There are many stakeholders that we want to bring in. Why doesn't this committee allow all office bearers to come?
JPC has 21 members from Lok Sabha – 7 from BJP, 3 from Congress 1. Jagdambika Pal (BJP) 2. Nishikant Dubey (BJP) 3. Tejashwi Surya (BJP) 4. Aparajita Sarangi (BJP) 5. Sanjay Jaiswal (BJP) 6. Dilip Saikia (BJP) 7. Abhijeet Gangopadhyay (BJP) Smt. DK Aruna (YSRCP) 9. Gaurav Gogoi (Congress) 10. Imran Masood (Congress) 11. Mohammad Javed (Congress) 12. Maulana Mohibullah (SP) 13. Kalyan Banerjee (TMC) 14. A Raja (DMK) 15. LS Devarayalu (TDP) 16. Dineshwar Kamat ( JDU) 17. Arvint Sawant (Shiv Sena, Uddhav Group) 18. Suresh Gopinath (NCP, Sharad Pawar) 19. Naresh Ganapat Mske (Shiv Sena, Shinde Group) 20. Arun Bharti (LJP-R) 21. Asaduddin Owaisi (AIMIM)
JPC has 10 members of Rajya Sabha – 4 from BJP, one MP from Congress 1. Brij Lal (BJP) 2. Dr. Medha Vishram Kulkarni (BJP) 3. Ghulam Ali (BJP) 4. Dr. Radha Mohan Das Aggarwal (BJP) 5. Syed Naseer Hussain (Congress) 6. Mohammad Nadeem ul Haq (TMC) 7. V Vijaysai Reddy (YSRCP) 8. M Mohammad Abdullah (DMK) 9. Sanjay Singh (AAP) 10. Dr. . Dharmasthala Virendra Hegde (Nominated by the President)
JPC meetings held so far on Waqf Bill…
November 5: Daudi Bohra community told JPC – keep us out of Waqf Board purview. In the November 5 meeting, the Dawoodi Bohra community demanded that they should be excluded from the purview of the Waqf Board, as the Waqf (Amendment) Bill did not recognize their special status. Advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the Dawoodi Bohra community, told the panel that it is a small and close-knit sect.
29 October: A huge uproar between opposition MPs and the Delhi Waqf Board. In the meeting held on October 29, there was a huge ruckus between the opposition MPs and the Delhi Waqf Board. Opposition MPs said it was illegal to allow the Delhi Waqf Board to make the presentation without the approval of the Delhi government.
October 14, Fifth meeting: Kharge accused of grabbing property In the meeting, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge was accused of usurping Waqf property. Upset by this, MPs from opposition parties boycotted the meeting. He also wrote a letter to the Speaker and demanded the removal of Jagdambika Pal, the chairperson of the committee. Also asked for time to meet the speaker.
6 September, 4th meeting: ASI objects to old law A team of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) also participated in the meeting. The team said through the presentation that the new amendment bill is also necessary for the preservation of old monuments. ASI also registered its five objections to the old Wakf Act.
September 5, 3rd meeting: Opposition said- Ministry hid information In the third meeting, the officials of the ministries gave a presentation on the Waqf Bill. Meanwhile, the officials had a heated argument with the opposition MPs. Opposition MPs alleged that government officials were not giving full details of the bill during the presentation. AAP MP Sanjay Singh and TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee protested the most.
August 30, second meeting: Opposition MPs stage a walkout In the second meeting, the opposition members walked out of the meeting for a few minutes. The meeting lasted for about 8 hours. The views of All India Sunni Jamiatul Ulema and Indian Muslim for Civil Rights, Rajasthan Muslim Waqf, Delhi and UP Sunni Waqf Board were heard in the meeting.
August 22, First meeting: Chairman of the committee said – everyone's views will be heard The first meeting of the 31-member JPC was held on August 22. In this, committee chairman Jagdambika Pal said that all the 44 amendments will be discussed during the consideration of the bill. Everyone will be heard. An official of the Ministry of Minority Affairs and Law briefed the committee about the changes in the draft law.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
