Key points
- India is home to over 872,000 waqf properties valued at around $14b
- The proposed bill, expected to pass in April, aims to reform waqf laws
- We will take back every inch of this land: Yogi Adityanath
ISLAMABAD: A controversial new law is stirring debate across India as the government prepares to take control of thousands of Muslim religious properties, known as waqf land. These properties, donated by Muslims for charitable or religious use—such as mosques, graveyards, and orphanages—are now at the centre of a political storm.
India, home to over 872,000 waqf properties valued at around $14 billion, has more such properties than any other country. The waqf boards that manage them are considered the third-largest landholders in India, after the armed forces and Indian Railways, according to the Economist.
The proposed bill, expected to pass in April, aims to reform these laws. The government argues that it will help curb mismanagement and prevent illegal occupation of these lands. However, critics call it an attempt to seize Muslim property and push forward a Hindu nationalist agenda, according to Al Jazeera.
Weakening minority rights
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accused the opposition Congress party of giving waqf boards too much freedom to appease Muslim voters. Supporters of the bill claim that many waqf properties have already been sold to private individuals, according to the Economist.
But opponents see this move as part of a broader strategy to weaken minority rights. If passed, the bill would allow the government to take over waqf properties that it already partially or fully occupies and remove the “waqf by user” status from older sites that lack documentation, according to Deccan Herald.
According to the Economic Times, some extremist elements fear that even historical monuments could be affected inn case previous laws are not changed. In 2005, an attempt to register the Taj Mahal as a waqf property was blocked by India’s Supreme Court for lacking legal documents from its original builder, Emperor Shah Jahan.
Complex legal situation
Yet, according to the India Express, the Archaeological Survey of India confirms that 256 other heritage sites it manages are registered as waqf, creating a complex legal situation.
Prominent Muslim leaders have voiced their objections. Member of Parliament Asaduddin Owaisi claims the bill is “not meant to protect waqf properties but to take them away”, reports the Hindu.
Participating in the debate on the President’s Address, Mr. Owaisi said that the Bill has been rejected by the entire Muslim community and its implementation would take this country back to the 1980s and early 1990s.
“I am cautioning and warning this government – if you bring and make a Waqf law in the present form, it will be a violation of Articles 25, 26, and 14, and it will lead to social instability in this country. It has been rejected by the entire Muslim community. No Waqf property will be left, nothing will be left,” Mr. Owaisi said.
Leading to destruction
“You want to make India ‘Viksit Bharat’, we want ‘Viksit Bharat’. If you want to take this country back to the ’80s and early ’90s, it will be your responsibility. Because, as a proud Indian Muslim, I will not lose an inch of my Masjid… I will not lose an inch of my Dargah. I will not allow that,” he said.
Syed Sadatullah Husaini, head of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, fears the law could lead to the destruction of important Muslim sites. The proposed law unfairly targets Muslim endowments and does not apply the same rules to Hindu religious trusts.
The move follows a series of controversial decisions by the Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including the revocation of Article 370 and 35A in 2019, which removed the special status of Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir; the introduction of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which excludes Muslim refugees; and the construction of a Hindu temple in Ayodhya where a mosque once stood before being demolished in 1992.
Modi’s aggressive legislative agenda
Although Modi’s tone softened after his party failed to secure a clear majority in the 2024 elections, recent electoral wins in Haryana, Maharashtra, and Delhi have emboldened the BJP to revive its aggressive legislative agenda, according to the Diplomat, Asia Pacific Current Affairs Magazine.
Modi’s alignment with leaders like Donald Trump—who avoids criticising human rights issues—may have encouraged this renewed assertiveness.
A parliamentary committee reviewing the bill recently accepted suggestions from BJP allies while rejecting opposition concerns. Meanwhile, Hindu nationalist groups have filed petitions in the Supreme Court against a law that protects religious sites’ status as of India’s independence in 1947—seen by many as an attempt to alter the religious landscape further, according to the Economist.
In states like Uttar Pradesh, BJP leaders are openly campaigning on the issue. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, seen as a possible successor to Modi, has vowed to reclaim what he calls illegally designated waqf land. “We will take back every inch of this land,” he said. The state has over 232,000 waqf properties—more than any other part of India, according to Mint, an Indian newspaper.
Taking control of waqfs properties
In Delhi, the government has announced plans to take control of 123 waqf properties, including the historic Parliament Street mosque that has served Muslim parliamentarians since 1947, according to the Hindu.
Mumbai is another flashpoint. The land on which Mukesh Ambani’s mansion now stands was originally donated in 1894 to set up a Muslim orphanage. The trust sold the land in 2002 to Ambani’s company, which claims it received full legal approval, according to the Wall Street Journal.
However, the local Waqf Board challenged the sale in court and lost. Experts believe such legal challenges will become even harder if the new law is passed.
The growing unease among Muslims is evident. Many fear a wave of property seizures.
As the country moves toward implementing this controversial bill, tensions between religious communities and the state continue to rise. What remains to be seen is whether the legislation will ensure better governance or deepen the divide between India’s communities.
