Mumbai, April 22 (IANS) BJP MP and Chairman of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf Amendment Bill, Jagdambika Pal, on Tuesday, criticised the Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi for not participating in the debate and instead claiming the Bill was “unconstitutional”.
“If Rahul Gandhi is terming the bill unconstitutional then as a JPC Chairman I am saying that when there was 12-hour debate held in Parliament why he has not participated in it. Being an LoP what is his responsibility towards the nation and electoral college? If the government is accountable to this Bill and the Treasury bench is also accountable to this Bill the Opposition is also equally responsible. Being an LoP, if he has not participated then he has no moral right to claim it unconstitutional,” Pal said at the press conference after participating in the public gathering.
“If someone in JPC or any other party claim that the Bill is unconstitutional, I am ready to have a dialogue with them,” he said.
He added that the Waqf Amendment Bill introduced a clause which completely omits Section 40 from the Waqf Act of 1995 which allowed the board to collect information regarding any property which it has reason to believe to be Waqf property.
He claimed that the Congress-led UPA government in 2013 had included the Section 40 ahead of the notification on general elections.
He added that the omission of Section 40 has been undertaken to rationalise the powers of the Board.
The idea was to ensure that Waqf properties are declared only after following due process, he said.
The JPC Chairman said that the Union government could have pushed the Bill for the passage in the Parliament based on the majority but it was not done as the Bill was passed after a debate.
He added that there have been no protests across the country except Murshidabad in West Bengal.
“Why there was a violence? Had police been alert it could have been averted. Till four days, there were incidents of arson and violence. A large number of Hindus were forced to migrate from Murshidabad to Malad by crossing the river. If there is mob lynching then it was a state-sponsored violence,” Pal claimed.
He alleged that efforts are on by certain elements to mislead the Muslims as done in the case of Citizenship Amendment Act or scrapping of Article 370.
Pal said that Waqf Amendment Act has become the law of the nation and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had no right to refuse its implementation which is unconstitutional.
“Such statements are being made by Mamata Banerjee with an eye on Assembly elections slated for next year,” he remarked.
He asserted that that the Waqf Amendment Act aims to bring transparency, digitise records, and improve the management of Waqf properties for the benefit of marginalised Muslims, particularly Pasmanda Muslims, women, and orphans.
He argued that it has corrected past mismanagement and ensured that Waqf properties serve their intended charitable purpose.
–IANS
sj/khz
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by BhaskarLive.in and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of BhaskarLive.in We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, BhaskarLive.in takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
