The Centre is soon going to introduce a bill in Parliament for the amendment of the Wakf Act, which would end the arbitrary powers of the Wakf Boards in declaring any property their asset, besides leading to increased women's representation.
Sources said that the bill would have about 40 amendments to the Wakf Act and had already been approved by the Union Cabinet by Friday.
The proposed amendments bill seeks to omit certain provisions in the Act, which grant undue powers to the Wakf Boards that often give rise to disputes. One such incident happened in September 2022 when the Tamil Nadu Wakf Board laid claim over the entire Thiruchendurai village, where Hindus are in a majority since centuries.
The legislation is an effort to grapple with these very problems by ending unbridled power of the boards. Some of its main features include provisions for compulsory verification processes for more transparency, changing the constitution and working of the Wakf Boards by amending Sections 9 and 14 to have women, verification of fresh properties in order to end disputes, and involvement of magistrates in supervision of the Wakf properties.
It is a drive for such changes that has been endorsed by Muslim intellectuals, women and different sects, including the Shia and Bohra communities.
Presently, around 870,000 properties are under the Wakf Boards across the country, that is, about 940,000 acres in area.
The Wakf Act came into force in 1995 to deal with assets declared as waqf—property irrevocably dedicated for a purpose recognized by Muslim law as pious, religious, or charitable.
These turned the Wakf Boards virtually impossible to wrest back land from. These amendments have been a source of controversy ever since.
In an attempt to assuage the concerns regarding the autonomy to board, the Centre will bring this bill in Parliament in the forthcoming week.
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