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New Delhi: Dark clouds hover over the Parliament House complex on a rainy day, during the Monsoon session, in New Delhi, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024. (Photo: PTI)
The Act was brought to regulate ‘Auqaf’ (assets donated and notified as Waqf) by a wakif (the person who dedicates a property for any purpose recognised by Muslim law as religious or charitable. It was last amended in 2013.
Five sweeping changes that will overhaul the Waqf Act, 1995:
1) If passed, the Waqf Act, 1995 will be renamed as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995.
2) According to its statement of objects and reasons as seen by news agency PTI, the Bill seeks to omit Section 40 of the current law. This section is linked to the powers of the Board to decide if a property is Waqf property, a subject that has remained the centre of much controversy lately.
3) In the amended law, there is a provision for the Central Waqf Council and the State Waqf Boards to include a broad-based composition, ensuring the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims.
4) There is also a provision for the establishment of a separate Board of Auqaf for the Boharas and Aghakhanis. These are two sects within the Ismailis belief system in Islam. The draft law aims to ensure representation of Shias, Sunnis, Bohras, Agakhanis and other backward classes among Muslim communities.
5) In the amended bill, any ambiguities surrounding ‘Wafq’ have been removed by defining “Waqf as Waqf by any person practising Islam for at least five years and having ownership of such property”. The draft bill also details the process for mutation, in accordance with revenue laws, before recording any property as Waqf property.
[With PTI inputs]
First Published: Aug 07 2024 | 12:12 PM IST
