Owaisi, Congress MP move Supreme Court against Wakf Amendment Bill

New Delhi, Apr 04: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader and Member of Parliament Asaduddin Owaisi has filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the Wakf Amendment Bill, 2024, calling it unconstitutional and discriminatory towards the Muslim community. The legislation, already cleared by both Houses of Parliament, is currently awaiting Presidential assent before becoming law, Bar and Bench reported.

Earlier in the day, Congress MP Mohammad Jawed, who served on the Joint Parliamentary Committee that reviewed the Bill, also approached the apex court, raising similar concerns. In his petition, Jawed argued that the Bill infringes upon multiple fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution, including Article 14 (equality before the law), Article 25 (freedom of religion), Article 26 (management of religious affairs), Article 29 (cultural rights of minorities), and Article 300A (right to property), as reported by Bar and Bench.

Filed through advocate Anas Tanwir, Jawed’s plea states that the Bill imposes burdensome restrictions on the management of waqf properties—charitable endowments under Islamic law—without imposing comparable limitations on the religious trusts of other communities. “While Hindu and Sikh trusts retain substantial autonomy, the proposed amendments disproportionately increase state intervention in waqf governance,” the petition notes, calling it an “arbitrary classification” that lacks a rational connection to the law’s stated objectives.

Among the most contentious provisions is a five-year religious practice requirement for those wishing to declare property as waqf—an eligibility criterion that, according to Jawed, lacks any basis in Islamic law and could effectively exclude recent converts to Islam from creating waqfs.

The Bill also mandates that non-Muslim members be included in the Central Waqf Council, a provision that Jawed calls an “unwarranted interference in the religious governance” of the Muslim community. He notes that Hindu religious boards, by contrast, are typically composed exclusively of members from within the community. During the Lok Sabha debate, Owaisi had voiced strong opposition to the Bill, claiming it violates constitutional protections as reported by Bar and Bench.