On 17th February, the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), the political wing of the now-banned Islamic terrorist outfit Popular Front of India (PFI), held a ‘Waqf Protection Rally‘ in Kollam, Kerala. SDPI gave the slogan ‘Waqf Protection for Social Security’ during the rally. The state president of the political outfit, CPA Latheef, presided over the event.
Waqf Amendment Bill Unacceptable
— SDPI (@sdpofindia) February 18, 2025
Waqf Protection Rally
and Grand Conference held at Kollam, Kerala#IndiaAgainstWaqfBill pic.twitter.com/v7EVtQ2VyL
A conference was held after the rally, where the state general secretary of the Dakshina Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama, Thodiyoor Muhammed Kunju Moulavi, accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) regime at the centre of secretly attempting to destroy the Constitution of the country and bring in Manusmriti through the Waqf amendment.
Thodiyoor Muhammed Kunju Moulavi was delivering the inaugural speech of the public meeting after the rally. Moulavi added that the very existence of the Constitution of India was being destroyed through the amendment to the Waqf Act.
He said, “The Waqf Amendment Bill is posing a threat to the country’s Constitution and destroying it. World nations respect India’s rulers because India follows democracy and secularism. India is a garden of diversity. Places of worship, including mosques, temples, churches, and gurdwaras, are symbols of secularism. Any aggression against any one of these is a challenge to the country’s secularism.”
Waqf Amendment Bill
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, aims to address these challenges by introducing reforms such as digitisation, enhanced audits, improved transparency, and legal mechanisms to reclaim illegally occupied properties. The Waqf Act of 1995, enacted to regulate Waqf properties, has long been criticised for issues such as mismanagement, corruption, and encroachments. The bill was introduced last year and was sent to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for further assessment. The JPC report has already been tabled in the Rajya Sabha.
The opposition, however, has opposed the JPC report and claimed that their objections were not included in it, an allegation that Jagadambika Pal, BJP MP and Chairman of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, categorically denied.
