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Amit Shah speaks during the Budget Session in Parliament on Wednesday. PTI Photo

LIVE | DMK to move SC, says Stalin as Lok Sabha passes Waqf Bill

Amit Shah says government is solely driven by aim of transparent administration of Waqf properties; Bill “bulldozed” through in Lok Sabha, says Sonia


After an 11-hour marathon debate, the hugely controversial Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed early Thursday (April 3) morning, with 288 votes in favour and 232 against, reflecting a sharp political divide.

Earlier copy: The ruling NDA on Wednesday (April 2) launched a feisty defence of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill in the Lok Sabha amid the Opposition's charge that it was unconstitutional and targeted Muslims, as Home Minister Amit Shah asserted that the government had no intention of interfering in their religious matters and was solely driven by the aim of transparent administration of Waqf properties.

Shah's intervention came during the day-long debate that witnessed a fierce exchange between the two sides, with Congress Deputy Leader Gaurav Gogoi alleging that the bill was an attempt to attack the basic structure of the Constitution, defame minorities, disenfranchise them and divide society.

'Nothing to do with religion'

Minorities Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju in his opening remarks rejected the allegation that the proposed law was an interference in the constitutionally guaranteed freedom in religious affairs.

The bill has nothing to do with religion, but deals only with properties, he said tabling the Bill, which was examined and redrafted by a joint committee of Parliament.

"The government is not going to interfere in any religious institution. The changes made in the Waqf law by the UPA government gave it overriding effect over other statutes, hence the new amendments were required," Rijiju said amid noisy opposition protests.

"You (opposition) tried to mislead the people on issues which are not part of the Waqf Bill," she said to the opposition.

Both ministers asserted that the proposed reforms would ensure the welfare of poor Muslims and women.

Allies come in support

The BJP was bolstered by a show of support from its key allies like the TDP, JD(U), Shiv Sena and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), while the INDIA bloc put up a united show in opposing the bill.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav claimed that the bill is a BJP's ploy for polarisation following its reverses in the Lok Sabha polls, alleging that it will send a wrong message to the world denting the country's secular image.

Also read:

Waqf Bill: History will never forgive this betrayal, Owaisi tells Naidu, Nitish

Waqf bill: Congress issues whip to its Lok Sabha MPs for next 3 days

Waqf bill showdown: INDIA bloc holds meeting to formulate joint strategy

Follow Live updates below:

Live Updates

  • 3 April 2025 6:07 AM GMT

    Waqf Bill assault on Constitution: Sonia

    Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Thursday termed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill as a “brazen assault” on the Constitution, saying it was part of the BJP's strategy to keep society in a state of “permanent polarisation”.

    Hours after the Lok Sabha passed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, Sonia said the bill was “bulldozed” through in the lower house.

    Addressing Congress MPs at a meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party in Samvidhan Sadan here, she also said that the One Nation, One Election Bill is another subversion of the Constitution and the party would strongly oppose it.

    “Whether it is education, civil rights and liberties, our federal structure or conduct of elections, the Modi government is dragging the country into an abyss where our Constitution will remain on paper and we know their intention is to demolish even that,” she charged.

    “It is vital for all of us to continue to fight for what is right and just, to expose Modi government's failing and intention to turn India into a surveillance state,” Sonia told MPs at the meeting.

    All party MPs, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, were present at the meeting.

    Sonia also alleged that the prime minister has rebranded, repackaged and marketed numerous initiatives taken during 2004-2014 as his own personal accomplishments. That too needs to be exposed through our own public outreach activities, she asserted.

    Speaking on the functioning of both houses of Parliament, she charged that the Leaders of Opposition are not allowed to speak and the treasury benches are often found to be creating disturbance in a bid to not allow the Congress to raise their issues.

    Noting that the BJP members aggressively target Congress-ruled state governments, with “total falsehoods”, she urged party MPs to be equally aggressive and raise the failures and mis-governance in BJP-ruled states.

    This will mean much more pointed homework and research on our part, she noted.

  • 3 April 2025 6:02 AM GMT

    DMK to move SC on Waqf Bill: Stalin

    Taking strong exception to the passage of the Waqf Bill in the Lok Sabha, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president M K Stalin on Thursday said his party would file a case in the Supreme Court against the Bill.

    The CM, who came to the Assembly wearing a black badge to protest against the passing of the Bill, said adopting the amendment at 2 am “at the behest of a few allies” despite the opposition of the majority parties in India, “is an attack on the structure of the Constitution”.

    “This is an act that disturbs religious harmony. To highlight this, we are participating in today's Assembly proceedings wearing black badges,” the chief minister told the House.

    “I would like to inform you that a case will be filed in the Supreme Court on behalf of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) against this controversial amendment. Tamil Nadu will fight against the Union government's law which destroys the autonomy of the Waqf Board and threatens the minority Muslim population,” Stalin said amidst thumping of desk by the Treasury.

    He pointed out that the state Assembly had already passed a resolution House on March 27, against the proposed amendment as it would seriously affect the religious harmony of India besides the minority Muslim community.

    He said it was highly condemnable that the amendment of the Waqf Act has been passed in the Lok Sabha despite 232 MPs voting against it and this was not an ordinary number, and the number may increase. Only 288 members voted in its favour, he said.

  • 3 April 2025 5:19 AM GMT

  • 3 April 2025 4:41 AM GMT

    Amendment will restore equality, protect property rights: Chandrasekhar

    BJP's Kerala unit president Rajeev Chandrasekhar, in a Facebook post, said the Waqf system, nurtured for decades “by successive Congress governments driven by politics of appeasement”, had trampled on constitutional rights and had denied individuals their rightful ownership of property.

    “This amendment will restore equality, protect property rights, and provide long-overdue relief to affected people in different parts of the country. Under the leadership of PM Narendramodi ji, BJP govt remains committed to delivering on our promises and ensuring justice, fairness, and equal rights for all,” he said in the post.

  • 3 April 2025 4:38 AM GMT

    Munambam residents erupt in joy

    The residents of Kerala’s Munambam, who had been on a relay hunger strike for 173 days under the banner of “Munambam Bhoo Samrakshana Samithi”, burst into joy on Thursday as the Lok Sabha passed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill the previous night.

    Shouting slogans like “Narendra Modi Zindabad”, the protesters, mostly Christians, expressed hope that the issue will be resolved once the new law is enacted.

    While they plan to celebrate the development on Thursday, the ongoing protest will continue, they said.

    Joseph Benny, convener of the Samithi, said they are very happy and expressed hope that they would get their revenue rights on their properties when the Bill came into effect.

    He criticised the Congress-Left MPs from the state who, in his view, failed to voice the concerns of the Munambam community in Parliament, which he said has deeply hurt the people.

    However, he acknowledged the support from Prime Minister Modi, Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and Union Minister Kiran Rijiju.

    Soon after the bill was passed in the Lok Sabha, approximately 600 families from the Munambam coastal area near Kochi burst crackers.

    The residents are optimistic that the Waqf Board’s claim over their land will be resolved once the Waqf (Amendment) Bill becomes law.

    BJP leaders, including Rajeev Chandrasekhar and V Muraleedharan, are scheduled to visit Munambam on Thursday.

  • 3 April 2025 2:02 AM GMT

    Waqf bill aimed at marginalising Muslims: Rahul

  • 3 April 2025 12:46 AM GMT

    Amit Shah defends govt on Manipur

    Home Minister Amit Shah replied to the discussion on the Manipur Resolution. He said the violence in Manipur was unfortunate but it was triggered due to a court order and not the administrative decisions of the BJP government.

    Manipur was a case of caste violence (over the past 22 months) but during UPA days the state used to have repeated instances of violence, bandhs, shutdowns for no reason, he added. 

    He told the Opposition not to politicise the Manipur issue, warning that "if you politicise, the reply will also be political". The situation is in control in Manipur now, though not satisfactory, and efforts for rehabilitation are underway, he added.

    President's Rule was imposed in Manipur because "our CM resigned and we discussed with all other parties in the state and none of them were in a position to form the government", he further said.

    Close to 3 am, the Statutory Resolution passed by the Lok Sabha.

    Speaker Om Birla adjourned the House till 11 am on Thursday, April 3.

  • 3 April 2025 12:44 AM GMT

    Kanimozhi slams government on Manipur

    DMK MP Kanimozhi said that the government chose past 2 am to discuss Manipur shows what regard and care it has for Manipur. "They have chosen this time to go ahead with the discussion because they don't wish to give time to the issue," she said.

    "The CM (Biren Singh) of the state was responsible for triggering the violence. Where did those guns come from? What measures did he take when those girls were paraded naked, raped, killed? What have you (BJP) done? You have cut the food budget for the state by over 28 per cent when people in the state are already facing a crisis. Do you care about the women of Manipur? This is the time for you (BJP) to be honest and answer these questions to yourself in the interest of the country," said Kanimozhi.

  • 3 April 2025 12:42 AM GMT

    Better late than never: Tharoor

    The Lok Sabha Speaker called Congress MP Shashi Tharoor to open discussion on the Resolution despite multiple MPs requesting for the House to be adjourned citing the late hour (2 am).

    Tharoor initiated the discussion, saying better late than never.

    He pointed out that President's Rule in Manipur is an even more onerous responsibility on the Centre given the fact that the Prime Minister has chosen to not visit the state ever since the unrest began.

    The Resolution is constitutionally required and so the Congress and Opposition wouldn't oppose it, he said, but asked the Home Minister to explain what is the way forward for healing and closure to the problems in Manipur.

    Sayani Ghosh of the Trinamool Congress said: "Had the government agreed to our repeated demands for discussion on Manipur when the unrest began and for meaningful intervention and corrective measures, the need for this debate would perhaps not have arisen."

    "The fact is the double-engine government of Manipur let the state burn for 22 months," he added.

  • 3 April 2025 12:41 AM GMT

    Amendments moved by Opposition defeated

    All the amendments moved by Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, as per recommendations suggested by the JPC, were passed by the Lok Sabha. All the amendments moved by the Opposition were defeated.

    Clause by clause voting on the Bill also concluded in the early hours of Thursday (April 3).

    Union Home Minister Amit Shah also moved the Statutory Resolution approving the "Proclamation issued by the President on the 13th February, 2025, under Article 356 (1) of the Constitution in relation to the State of Manipur."


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