THE Modi government has passed a new bill targeting the Muslim community, this time eyeing swathes of priceless real estate traditionally owned and managed by Muslim waqf boards.
Under the new statute, the government has put its foot in the door by assigning crucial decision-making in endowment disputes to a state official. The bill renames the 1995 Waqf Act and calls it the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act.
The stated objective is to enhance the efficiency of the administration and management of waqf properties. The opposition says it is a euphemism for land grab.
The Modi government from its inception has been attacking India’s minorities, the largest such community in its crosshairs being the Muslims. While Sikhs, Christians and Dalits bear the bias equally, targeting Muslims seems more institutionalised and strategically advertised. Much of the assault has come from state-sponsored mobs but increasingly, the state has become a direct party in targeting Muslims.
A current example is the vengeful bulldozing of Muslim homes and shops by state governments, ignoring a bar on such action by the Indian supreme court.
The irony is that the ideologically driven ruling establishment leans on patriarchal traditions and lores to subvert the progress of Hindu women while it clamours for an anomalous role as the saviour of Muslim women. It justifies the new bill by making it mandatory for Muslim women to be members of waqf boards. Opposition leaders pooh-pooh the claim, saying women are already mandated to be board members by a preceding Act.
The likeliest reason for the controversial law lies perhaps in the Modi government’s overriding interest in granting favours to friendly business captains. The most extravagant building shaping Mumbai’s skyline is owned by a tycoon close to the Modi regime. It was built on controversially acquired waqf land originally donated for the education of poor children belonging to a steadily marginalised and increasingly pauperised Muslim community.
Published in Dawn, April 5th, 2025
