On the 2nd of April 2025, the Waqf Amendment Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha after a 12-hour-long heated debate. During the debate on the Waqf Bill, Union Home Minister Amit Shah delivered a historic speech and launched scathing attacks on opposition leaders for politicising the bill to appease their Muslim vote bank. Here are the key highlights of HM Amit Shah’s speech.
Non-Muslim members not to be involved in religious activities of Waqf Board, Waqf is a religious matter, but Waqf Boards and properties are not religious institutions: HM Amit Shah
During his speech, Minister Shah said that there is no provision for involving non-Muslims in the administration of religious institutions, and they do not wish to create such provisions. He also accused the opposition of spreading misconceptions, claiming that this Bill is being introduced to interfere with the religious activities of Muslims and the properties they have donated. He asserted that the opposition is trying to create fear among the minority community to build its vote bank.
The Union Home Minister said that the role of non-Muslim will be solely to ensure that the administration of charity-related matters is being conducted per the regulations. Amit Shah said that the Waqf in India functions like a trust, where there are trustees and a managing trustee. In Waqf, there are Waqif (donor) and Mutawalli (administrator), who are followers of Islam. He also emphasised that while Waqf is a religious matter, the Waqf Board or Waqf properties themselves are not religious institutions. According to the law, a Charity Commissioner can be from any religion, as they are not managing a trust; their responsibility is to ensure that the Board operates in compliance with charity laws. Shri Shah emphasized that this is an administrative matter, not a religious one.
Speaking in the Lok Sabha on the resolution to approve the Proclamation issued under Article 356 regarding the President's Rule in Manipur. https://t.co/ihgiuFlFqh
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) April 2, 2025
“Waqf Act and Board came into effect in 1995. All the arguments about the inclusion of non-Muslims are about interference in the Waqf. First of all, no non-Muslim would come into the Waqf. Understand this clearly…There is no such provision to include any non-Muslim among those who manage the religious institutions; we do not want to do this…This is a huge misconception that this Act will interfere with the religious conduct of Muslims and interfere with the property donated by them. This misconception is being spread to instil fear among minorities for their vote bank,” Amit Shah said.
“You (Opposition) would break this country…Through this House, I would like to tell Muslims of the country that not even one non-Muslim would come into your Waqf. This Act has no such provision. But what would the Waqf Board and Waqf Council do? To catch the people selling off Waqf properties and drive them out, to catch those who lease off their properties for 100 years in the name of Waqf. The income of Waqf is dropping, the income with which we have to do development for minorities and push them forward, that money is being stolen. Waqf Board and Council will catch that,” he added.
Amit Shah said that a person can donate only property that belongs to them and cannot donate property that belongs to the government or any other individual.
He said changes have been made only in provisions related to the Council and Board in the 1995 Act, which deal with administrative tasks.
“Where will non-Muslim members be included? In the Council and Waqf Board. What would they do? They won’t run any religious activity. They would only look after the administration of property donated by someone under Waqf Law, whether it is being done as per law, whether the property is being used for the intent with which it was donated,” he added.
Amit Shah also took a jibe at RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav, whose party is part of the INDIA bloc. “When amendments to the Waqf were introduced in 2013, Lalu Prasad Yadav stated that he wanted a strict law and wanted to put those in jail who were stealing. Narendra Modi has fulfilled Lalu Prasad Yadav’s wishes,” the Home Minister said.
Home Minister highlighted numerous cases of arbitrary ownership claims made by Waqf Boards on lands, temples, private institutions across the country
HM Amit Shah further stated that if the Waqf law had not been amended in 2013, this bill would not have been necessary. However, before the 2014 elections, in 2013, the Waqf law was drastically altered overnight for the sake of appeasement, which led to the allocation of 123 high-profile properties in the Lutyens’ Zone of Delhi to Waqf. The Delhi Waqf Board transferred the land of Northern Railways to Waqf.
“Had Waqf not been amended in 2013, this (current Amendment Bill) Bill would not have been needed. Everything was going well. But there were elections in 2014, and overnight in 2013, the Waqf Act was turned extreme for appeasement. As a result, the Congress government handed over 123 VVIP properties in Lutyens Delhi to Waqf when elections were just around the corner, just 25 days away,” he said.
#WATCH | #WaqfAmendmentBill | Union Home Minister Amit Shah says, "…Had Waqf not been amended in 2013, this (Amendment Bill) Bill would not have been needed. Everything was going well. But there were elections in 2014, and overnight in 2013, the Waqf Act was turned extreme for… pic.twitter.com/mfI0iv4vtK
— ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2025
In Himachal Pradesh, land was illegally converted into Waqf property and used to build unauthorized mosques. In Tamil Nadu, 400 acres of land belonging to the 1500-year-old Tiruchendur temple were declared Waqf property. According to a report from a committee in Karnataka, 29,000 acres of Waqf land were leased for commercial use. “Between 2001 and 2012, in the name of Waqf, properties worth ₹2 lakh crore were leased to private institutions for 100 years,” Minister Shah said.
He also mentioned that the High Court in Bengaluru had to intervene to stop the acquisition of 602 acres of land. In Honwad village in the Vijaypur area of Karnataka, 1500 acres of land were made controversial, and this land, worth ₹500 crore, was leased to a five-star hotel for just ₹12,000 per month.
“All this money is meant for the welfare of poor Muslims, not for the plundering of the wealthy,” Shah said.
He further spoke about cases involving Waqf Boards wrongfully claiming ownership of Hindu temples and Christian properties. “In Karnataka, a claim was made on the Dattapeeth temple. In Taliparamba, an attempt was made to seize 600 acres of land based on a 75-year-old claim. Even properties belonging to the Christian community were seized. Many churches in the country have opposed the Waqf Bill because they see it as a means to win the sympathy of the Muslim community. However, in four years, even the Muslim brothers will realize that this bill is actually in their benefit,” Shah asserted.
The Home Minister also mentioned that in Telangana, a claim was made on 1700 acres of land worth ₹66,000 crore. A similar case emerged in Assam, wherein a claim was made on 134 acres of land in the Morigaon district. Fourteen Marla land related to a Gurudwara in Haryana was handed over to Waqf, and the Chandrashekhar Azad Park in Prayagraj was also declared Waqf property. In Maharashtra, a claim was made on the Mahadev temple in Vadange village, and in Beed, the Waqf Board forcibly took 12 acres of land from Kankaleshwar.
Amit Shah also emphasized that the Modi government formed a joint committee, which held 38 meetings, engaged in 113 hours of discussion, consulted 284 stakeholders, invited online suggestions before drafting the law, and now a debate extending for 16 hours has been held over the Waqf Bill.
This is the law of the government of India and is binding on everyone: Amit Shah responds to opposition’s ‘Muslim nahi maanenge’ threats
During HM Shah’s speech, the opposition MPs were heard saying that the Muslim community of India will not accept the Waqf Amendment Bill. Minister Shah highlighted the threat issued by one of the opposition MPs and strongly asserted that the Waqf Amendment Bill is a law of the Indian government passed by the Parliament and is binding on all.
A member here said that minorities will not accept this law. What is this—an attempt to threaten? This is a law passed by Parliament, and everyone must accept it. What does it even mean to say that you won’t accept the law? How can anyone claim that they will not abide by it? This is a law of Bharat Sarkar, and it will be binding on everyone. It must be accepted,” Shah said.
Shah also took a veiled dig at Congress leader and ‘constitution book poser’ Rahul Gandhi and said, “Waving the Constitution has suddenly become a trend. But according to this very Constitution, how can any decision, whether by the government or a private institution beyond the judgment of the honourable court? The courts of this country cannot be denied access to such decisions. Where will citizens take their grievances? Where will those whose land has been taken away go? This will not be allowed. You did this for vote-bank politics, and we reject it. This cannot continue. If anyone has grievances, they should go to the court, and the court will deliver justice.”
Notably, the Waqf Amendment Bill passed in the Lok Sabha with 288-232 votes amid criticism from the opposition parties, including Congress, AIMIM, SP and others, The Opposition parties mounted an attack against the government, claiming that Waqf is an essential practice to Islam and therefore the Bill is against the Constitution. The government, in their strong reply, countered the charge. Pertinently, the Bill also does away with the draconian Section 40 of the Waqf Act 1995, which allowed the Waqf Board to claim properties overnight, including Hindu villages, temples, etc
