JPC on Waqf Bill seeks more clarifications from Karnataka, MP and Rajasthan: Sources

NEW DELHI: A meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), chaired by BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, on the proposed Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was held in Parliament Annexe on Thursday. In this meeting, representatives of the state governments of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan were present and recorded their oral evidence before the committee.

As per sources, in its presentation, representatives of the Karnataka government informed that the State Board of Auqaf manages 32,543 Waqf institutions across the state. This includes 11,436 mosques, 1,652 madrasas, 6,032 graveyards (qabarastans), 3,131 dargahs, 1,555 eidgahs and 8,737 Ashurkhanas and other facilities.

Out of the 1,12,007 acres of Waqf properties, 73,984 acres have been affected by legal reforms and acquisitions. Additionally, 17,969 acres have fallen prey to encroachment by private individuals and government agencies, leaving only 20,054 acres under direct Waqf management.

Sources said that representatives of the Madhya Pradesh government informed the committee that Madhya Pradesh’s Waqf Board oversees 14,921 registered Waqf properties spanning 52,752 acres, as documented in official records, including the Waqf register, Survey List, and Gazette. While significant progress has been made with the WAMSI Portal-DMS digitization and GPS surveys covering 13,509 properties, encroachments remain a pressing issue.

#WATCH | After the conclusion of JPC on the Waqf Amendment Bill, meeting today, Committee Chairman, Jagdambika Pal says, “Today, we had a meeting with the principal secretary and revenue secretary of the Department of minority affairs of Karnataka, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh -… pic.twitter.com/IcSEYSjHSR

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A total of 4,857 cases of encroachment have been identified, with 376 cases referred to District Collectors under Section 54 for action.Despite surveys and updates, including a 2024 portal revision, gaps persist, such as 81 duplications requiring NIC-PMU rectification and incomplete data on encroachments by government or board officials. Alarmingly, only 99 waqf deeds are available for 14,921 estates, leaving vast areas vulnerable.

Sources said that representatives of the Rajasthan government informed the committee that there are 19,044 Waqf properties in the state. These include graveyard, mosque, dargah, khanqah, registered in Rajasthan Waqf musafirkhana, takyia, well, madarsa/shool, agricultural land etc.

The representatives informed that a three-member Rajasthan Waqf Tribunal has been constituted under Section 83 of the Central Waqf Act to hear disputes related to Waqf properties. The disputes regarding Waqf properties are of the nature of encroachment, entry in revenue records, ownership, management, tenancy, eviction, etc.

Disputes arise because most of the Waqf properties are registered in the name of others in the revenue records. Cases of 9,036 Waqf properties have been sent to the concerned tahsildar for correction of entries in the revenue records. Information regarding correction of entries of 12 Waqf properties has been received.

However, the Joint Committee Parliament on the Waqf Bill was not fully satisfied with the presentation made by the states and raised several queries. The committee expressed displeasure on many points and asked the representatives to prepare proper answers to the queries.

The committee granted Karnataka and Rajasthan 15 days to respond, while representatives of Madhya Pradesh were asked to present again before the committee to clarify the state government’s stance. After the conclusion of the JPC meeting on the Waqf Amendment Bill, Committee chairman Jagdambika Pal said, “We had a meeting with the principal secretary and revenue secretary of the Department of Minority Affairs of Karnataka, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh — to know the registered and unregistered properties and the status of the Waqf properties there.”

“We have given some extra time to Madhya Pradesh and called them again. We are yet to receive reply from Karnataka and Rajasthan about some queries. After their response, we will decide on them”, Pal said.

It is pertinent to note that The Waqf Act, 1995, which was created to regulate waqf properties, has long faced allegations of mismanagement, corruption and encroachments. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 seeks to bring sweeping reforms, introducing digitisation, stricter audits, transparency and legal mechanisms to reclaim illegally occupied properties.

The JPC is holding a series of meetings to gather input from government officials, legal experts, Waqf Board members and community representatives from different states and Union Territories, aiming for the most comprehensive reform possible. (ANI)