Waqf Board related bill presented in Lok Sabha
Bill sent to Joint Parliamentary Committee after discussion
New Delhi – The Waqf Board Amendment Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 8th by Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju. The bill sparked a debate between the ruling and the opposition parties throughout the day, leading to some ruckus in the house. Following the discussion, Rijiju proposed sending the bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee for further review, a suggestion that was accepted by the Speaker, who assured that a committee would be formed soon.
When Rijiju presented the bill in the morning, it faced criticism from the opposition members including Congress MP K.C. Venugopal who called it a ‘direct attack on religion and the fundamental rights granted by the Constitution’. MPs from various parties, including Kanimozhi of the DMK, Akhilesh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party, and Supriya Sule of the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar Group), voiced their concerns. However, the bill
received support from members of Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) and Dr. Shrikant Shinde of the Shiv Sena (Shinde Group). Responding to the opposition’s criticism, Rijiju urged the Speaker to refer the bill to the Joint Parliamentary Committee, which was subsequently agreed upon.