'Anti-secular' Waqf Bill to snatch rights of Muslims, claims Mamata

PTI, KOLKATA, NOV 28, 20204 :  Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday described the Waqf (Amendment) Bill as "anti-secular," alleging that it would snatch the rights of Muslims.

Mamata, speaking in the Assembly, also said the Centre did not consult with states over the matter. "The Bill is anti-federal and anti-secular. It is a deliberate attempt to malign a particular section. It will snatch the rights of Muslims... The Centre did not consult us on the Waqf Bill," she said. The Chief Minister added that "if any religion were attacked," she would wholeheartedly condemn it.

Opposition parties have stridently criticised the amendments proposed by the Bill in the existing Waqf Act, alleging that they violate the religious rights of Muslims. The ruling BJP has asserted that the amendments will bring transparency to the functioning of the Waqf boards and make them accountable.

A parliamentary committee has been constituted to scrutinise the contentious Bill. The Chief Minister said that the Waqf matters were brought under an Act during the British era in 1934, and after Independence, it was amended, with another amendment in 1995, she said. "The Central government had tabled the Bill in the Lok Sabha on August 8, 2024, primarily to amend it. I believe that if this turns into an Act, then the Waqf will be destroyed," she said.

"The Centre should have discussed the matter with the states because, like the Central Waqf Board, there are state bodies. And this is a quasi-judicial body," Mamata stated.

"This Bill is against one religion. We celebrated the 75th anniversary of the Constitution on November 26. We are a secular and democratic country. Unity in diversity is our religion. This Bill is against the basic spirit of equality and the right to practise any religion," she said.

"Schools, hostels, and hospitals were built on Waqf land," the Chief Minister said and questioned whether those living on such land would be removed using bulldozers after the Bill becomes an Act.