The report of the joint committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was tabled and subsequently accepted by the Rajya Sabha amid massive protests by the opposition, forcing chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar to briefly adjourn proceedings on Thursday.
As soon as the report on the Bill, which aims to streamline registration of Waqf properties, was tabled by Rajya Sabha MP Medha Kulkarni, opposition MPs claimed that portions of dissent notes were removed and resorted to sloganeering.
The uproar continued as Dhankhar tried to read out a message from the President. "Don't show disrespect to the President of India," Dhankhar said while urging Leader of Opposition and Congress MP Mallikarjun Kharge to pacify the opposition members.
Kharge said the opposition would not accept "fake reports" that "bulldoze our views". The Congress chief demanded that the report be sent back to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) and presented again.
"In the JPC report, many members have their dissent report. It is not right to remove those notes and bulldoze our views. This is anti-democracy... We will never accept such fake reports. If the report does not have dissenting views, it should be sent back and presented again," Kharge said.
The final report of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) was presented to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on January 30 after months-long deliberations. The amended revised bill was adopted by the panel on January 29. While 14 amendments proposed by the ruling NDA members were approved, the changes suggested by the opposition MPs were rejected.
