Major changes made in Waqf Amendment Bill

New Delhi: Originally presented in August last year, the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was reviewed by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) led by BJP MP Jagdambika Pal.

The proposed changes aim to streamline the administration and management of Waqf properties, address loopholes in the 1995 Act and improve technology-driven governance. Here are the key changes:

Board membership

Before: Only Muslim members could be part of the Waqf Board.

Now: The new Bill mandates that 2 women and 2 non-Muslims must be included in the Board.

Property claims

Before: The Waqf Board could claim any property as its own.

Now: Before claiming any property, the Board must verify that the property belongs to the Waqf Board.

Government property status

Before: The Waqf Board could claim Government-owned property.

Now: Government property will be excluded from Waqf and the Board will not have ownership rights over it.

Right to appeal

Before: If someone disagreed with the Waqf Board’s decision, they could only appeal to the Waqf Tribunal and its decision was final.

Now: The decision of the Waqf Tribunal can be challenged in the High Court within 90 days.

Management and monitoring

Before: There were complaints of misuse of power, with the Waqf Board claiming properties unfairly.

Now: All Waqf properties must be registered at the district headquarters for better monitoring.

Special provisions for certain communities

Before: The same rules applied to everyone on the Waqf Board.

Now: Separate Waqf Boards will be created for the Bohra and Aga Khani Muslim communities.

Waqf Board members

Before: The Waqf Board was largely controlled by specific Muslim communities.

Now: The Board will include members from Shia, Sunni and backward Muslim communities.

Three MPs in the Central Waqf Council

Before: The Central Waqf Council had 3 MPs, all of whom had to be Muslim (2 from Lok Sabha and 1 from Rajya Sabha).

Now: The Central Government can appoint 3 MPs to the Central Waqf Council and they don’t have to be Muslim. These changes aim to make the management of Waqf properties more                            transparent and inclusive.