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‘Worth lakhs of crores, income merely 126 cr’: Amit Shah highlights Waqf misuse

Union Home Minister Amit Shah Wednesday April 02, 2025 while defending the Waqf Amendment Bill, highlighted the widespread encroachments on Waqf properties, misuse, mismanagement and corruption involved

Thursday April 3, 2025 1:30 AM, ummid.com News Network

Parliament Debate on Waqf: Union Home Minister Amit Shah Wednesday April 02, 2025 while defending the Waqf Amendment Bill, highlighted the widespread encroachments on Waqf properties, misuse, mismanagement and corruption involved.

“While Waqf owns land worth lakhs of crores of rupees, its annual income is only ₹126 crore”, Amit Shah said while participating in the debate on Waqf Amendment Bill.

“Waqf properties are equivalent to the lands owned by the Indian Railways. But, while the Railways runs business worth thousands of crores on this lands, the income from Waqf properties is just 126 crore rupees”, Amit Shah said in the Lok Sabha Wednesday.

The Waqf Amendment Bill 2024 was tabled in the Lok Sabha around 12:00 PM by Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju who said the bill henceforth will be called “Unified Waqf Management Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development Bill” or UMEED Bill.

Participating in the debate of the Waqf Bill, Amit Shah also highlighted how prime Waqf lands were leased on nominal rents.

“In Honwad village, Vijaypur, Karnataka, 1500 acres of land was made controversial, and this land, worth ₹500 crore, was leased to a five-star hotel for just ₹12,000 per month”, the Union Home Minister said.

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Speaking in the Lok Sabha on The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025. https://t.co/32ZsznVTL5

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) April 2, 2025

Questioning the justification of leasing centuries-old donated property for a five-star hotel at a mere ₹12,000 per month, Amit Shah emphasized that the Modi government wants to end such misuse and utilize the income from the Waqf properties for the welfare of poor Muslims, divorced women, orphaned children, and unemployed youth, helping them become self-sufficient and skilled.

“All this money is meant for the welfare of poor Muslims, not for the plundering of the wealthy”, Amit Shah said.

Amit Shah said that the primary role of the Waqf Board should be to identify and remove those who are exploiting Waqf properties.

"It should focus on individuals who have leased out properties in the name of Waqf at extremely low rates for hundreds of years", the Home Minister said.

He mentioned that the income from Waqf is decreasing, whereas this money should be used for the development of the minority community and to strengthen the institutions of Islam.

"The main task of the Waqf Board and its premises should be to stop the theft of these funds", Amit Shah said adding that the opposition wants to maintain the ongoing collusion during their rule, but now, that will no longer be the case.

The Union Home Minister said that no non-Muslim will be included in religious charity-related activities in the Waqf Board. He said that any non-Muslim members appointed in the Waqf Board or its premises will not be involved in religious activities.

"Their role will be solely to ensure that the administration of charity-related matters is being conducted in accordance with the regulations", he said.

Accusing the Opposition of misleading the Muslims, Amit Shah said within four years the community will see the positive results.

“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”, the Union Home Minister said.

Also Read: Debate on Waqf Bill: Gogoi lists sacrifices of Muslims, leaves BJP red faced

Amit Shah highlighted that from 1913 to 2013, the total land under the Waqf Board was 18 lakh acres. However, between 2013 and 2025, this land increased by 21 lakh acres, bringing the total to 39 lakh acres, with 21 lakh acres being added after 2013.

The Home Minister revealed that while 20,000 properties were originally recorded as leased, official records in 2025 now show zero leased properties, indicating that these properties were sold off.

Regarding the role of the District Collector in the Waqf Bill, Amit Shah stated that whenever land is purchased for a temple in the country, it is the Collector who determines its ownership.

Amit Shah questioned why there is opposition to the Collector investigating Waqf land, emphasizing that only the Collector has the authority to verify whether Waqf land belongs to the government or not.

During his speech, Amit Shah also read from the Lok Sabha records of 2013 when Lalu Prasad Yadav and others called for bringing in a strong law to protect Waqf properties and stop their misuse.

AIMIM Chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi however doubted Amit Shah’s concerns over misuse of Waqf properties and his claims to protect them.

“You are talking about protecting the Waqf properties. But, you have reduced the punishment for Waqf related offences from two years to 6 months, and made them non-bailable to bailable”, Owaisi said while participating in the debate on the Waqf Amendment Bill.

The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha with 288 in favour and 232 against. The voting on the Waqf Bill took place after the opposition demanded division of votes.

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