TMC protests against Waqf amendment bill in Kolkata | Latest news India

Kolkata Minority cell TMC held a rally in Kolkata on Sunday to protest against the Waqf Amendment Bill, which its leaders said was aimed at confiscating properties of Muslims.

Addressing the rally, TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee alleged that the BJP-led government at the Center does not respect the Constitution as it was moving forward on the issue without any discussion with the states.

Banerjee, a member of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Waqf Amendment Bill, alleged that the federal structure of the country was under threat due to this “authoritarian” attitude of the BJP.

“The Preamble of the Constitution is the eye of the nation. The BJP government does not follow the ideals of the Preamble,” he said.

Among the other speakers at the rally, held at Rani Rashmoni Road, were state Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim and Murarai MLA Mosarraf Hossain.

Hossain alleged that the Waqf Amendment Bill was part of a conspiracy to seize the properties of Muslims and polarize society for narrow political gains.

“Today’s meeting shows that the BJP will not succeed in its game plan,” he said.

The Center had included the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2024 in its legislative agenda for the winter session of Parliament pending a report from the parliamentary panel.

The bill seeks to amend the Waqf Act, 1995 to ensure greater accountability and transparency in the functioning of Waqf Boards and also contains provisions for mandatory inclusion of women in these bodies.

The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 8 and referred for consideration to the CPM constituted under the chairmanship of Lok Sabha MP Jagdambika Pal.

Earlier this week, opposition members in the JCP met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to request an extension of the panel’s mandate by a “reasonable time” to allow for substantive deliberations on the sweeping legislation.

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