April 3, 2025
Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev’s speech on The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, as Reported by Joint Committee and The Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2024
Sir, it is not the first time that the Waqf Act is being amended. It has been done earlier too. But, today, the tone, the tenure and the atmosphere in the House, I think, is not comparable to what may have happened in 2013. Sir, there are two types of intentions. One is the legislative intent which the courts look at when they interpret an Act, and the other is the political intent which all of us in the Opposition have to look at, before we cast our vote today at the end of the debate. What I feel–when I hear both sides, when I hear the Treasury Benches–what stands between the Opposition and what stands between the Treasury Benches is mistrust and why that mistrust is happening is because of the regime that is in power. We are not just debating the Constitution, Article 25 or 26 of the Constitution but, we are today, actually, debating two ideologies. An ideology that the Bharatiya Janata Party believes in and the ideology which the party sitting in the Opposition believe in. Sir, we believe in an ideology that every religion is equal, every race is equal, every gender is equal. But, when we look at this side, and we listen to their speeches carefully, they are a party with an ideology that keep taking us back to the days of partition, those painful days. And, today, I want to remind this House that after the massive aftermath of the partition of India when we were split into two countries, the two leading personalities who were at the forefront of politics in India and Pakistan were Pandit Nehru and Liaquat Ali. And, the two of them entered into a 1950 Pact showing trust in each other’s Constitutions’ belief and agreed at length that Minorities in our country and the Minorities in their countries, Hindus, Sindhis, etc., would be able to live with dignity. That is what we need to look back at. What is this Waqf (Amendment) Bill reeking of? It reeks a mistrust to replace an election process where elected members will sit on the Waqf Board, replacing selection by the State Government. Sir, there is a provision, which, I personally find very shocking that the managing trustee, the mutawalli can be removed from his position and one of the grounds is, if he is a member of an organisation which is banned under UAPA. Sir, if this is the kind of racial profiling this Bill is going to do, then, this Bill is suspect of being unconstitutional. I add to that another question; by saying that a non-Muslim person cannot donate land to a waqf, whether we are not creating a bigger divide between the Muslims and non-Muslims in this country, something which hon. Member, Shri Kapil Sibal said. Sir, to say that a Muslim must be a practising Muslim for five years, gives rise to a kind of discretion at the officer level in intervention which, I believe, would be सर, इस बिल का नाम आप लोगाना न उम्मीद रखा है। मैं आप लोगों से यह उम्मीद रखती हूं as a Member of All India Trinamool Congress कि जब-जब 6 दिसंबर आएगा, तब-तब भारतीय जनता पार्टी के कार्यकर्ता अलग-अलग जगह पर जुलूस न निकालें। मैं आपसे यह उम्मीद रखती हूं कि असम के मुख्य मंत्री दूसरे प्रदेश में जाकर सीमा टोकर न कहें कि हमने 1,200 मदरसे बंद कर दिए। मैं इस सरकार से यह उम्मीद रखती हूं that you will not tell shopkeepers कि अपनी दुकान के सामने अपना नाम लिखिए। आपको डा. सिंहवी की बात अच्छी नहीं लगी, जब उन्होंने कहा कि कुछ ही सालों में इस बिल को शायद unconstitutional मान कर उड़ाया जाएगा।… मैं उन्हीं शब्दों को घुमा कर बोलती हूं कि जब जब बीजेपी की सरकार हारेगी और जरूर हारेगी, तब हम पहला काम यही करेंगे कि इस एक्ट के जितने भी unconstitutional provisions हैं, उन्हें हम हटाने का काम करेंगे।
