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The tour was being done as part of the committee’s outreach for further detailing on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill and meeting with stakeholders.
The opposition MPs have been extremely miffed with the Chairman Jagdambika Pal, choosing to go for a protest organised by the BJP in Karnataka over charges against the Congress party in reference to Waqf properties in the state. (PTI)
Members of Parliament from the opposition who are part of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024 have chosen to boycott the committee tour for six days across five states to meet state councils and representatives from various departments within those states. This was being done as part of the committee’s outreach for further detailing on the bill and meeting with stakeholders.
The development came as Opposition MPs have been miffed with the JPC Chairman, Jagdambika Pal, choosing to attend a protest organised by the BJP in Karnataka over charges against the Congress party in reference to Waqf properties in the state.
Pal was invited to participate in the dharna by BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, who is not only a member of Lok Sabha from the state of Karnataka, but also a member of the JPC.
Opposition MPs have argued that when the committee is currently discussing the bill in detail, it is conflict of interest for the Chairman to participate in a protest of this nature. “If he wanted, he should have taken the entire committee to the dharna. This is indeed a conflict of interest and extremely reflective of what we have been saying that the committee Chairman is only pursuing the agenda of the ruling party,” an opposition MP told CNN-News18. It is further being speculated that the opposition MPs will once again write to the Lok Sabha Speaker about the conduct of the Chairman.
After participating in the protest on Thursday in the presence of farmers and BJP leaders, the JPC chairman said that the conduct of the Waqf state board in reference to the properties that have been claimed is extremely concerning.
The JPC tour, meanwhile, will begin on Friday in Guwahati and end on November 14 in Lucknow.
Apart from these two cities, the committee will also be travelling to Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, and Patna.
As per the details available, not only will the state councils be met, but meetings will also be held with departments and the Ministry of Minority Affairs of these states and also members from the Department of Law and Justice and Legal Services.
During the meeting in Guwahati, representatives not only from Assam will depose before the committee but even from the neighbouring states of Manipur, Tripura and Meghalaya.
The committee will travel to Bhubaneswar for consultations on November 11 and on November 12, it will travel to Kolkata. During the Kolkata schedule, the committee will meet representatives from the Jharkhand state Waqf board. They will then travel to Patna on November 13, and the visit will conclude in Lucknow with meetings on November 14.
In each of these five states, the JPC will also interact with other stakeholders. “Informal discussion with the representatives of Bar Council/Lawyers Association/Muttawalli Associations and other stakeholders on the ‘Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024’,” the committee programme schedule reads.
As of now, the committee, which had the bill referred to it in the last monsoon session of Parliament, has conducted over 20 meetings in the national capital and has already had a five-city tour last month.
The committee is well on track to submit its report to Parliament during the first week of the upcoming winter session. The government has already expressed its intent to pass the bill in the upcoming session.
