Speaking in Parliament against the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi today said that the bill is both “discriminatory and arbitrary,” noting that it violates the principles of Articles 14, 15 and 25 of the Constitution.

Owaisi said that the bill is a grave attack on the basic structure of the constitution. As an essential religious practice for Muslims, Waqf property management’s denial of legal recognition by seeking to restrict how Muslims can manage their Waqf property is a violation of the constitution, he stated

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Owaisi also questioned the logic behind the condition in the new amendment that a person must be practising Islam for five years to donate to Waqf. To insist that a person should practice Islam for five years, he asks, is not it an infringement to right to freedom of religion, adding that who will decide whether a convert has been practising Islam for the specific period?

Owaisi also highlighted that Waqf properties are not government property, and the government by the new amendment is trying to take over Masjid, Dargahs and other Waqf properties. He also cited several sections of the proposed amendments, that remove the protection to the Waqf assets.

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“By bringing this bill, you (the Central govt) are doing the work of dividing the nation not uniting it. This bill is evidence of the fact that you are an enemy of the Muslims,” Owaisi added.