Waqf Bill panel chairman taking unilateral decisions, Opposition MPs tell Speaker

Waqf Amendment Bill: Opposition members protest against unilateral decisions in Waqf Bill, meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla for resolution.

The Opposition members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday (November 5, 2024) to register their protest against the alleged “unilateral” decisions being taken by panel chairman and BJP MP Jagdambika Pal.

After their meeting, three members – AAP MP Sanjay Singh, Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee and DMK MP A. Raja – spoke to reporters. They said the Speaker heard them patiently and assured them of a decision at the earliest.

“It was a very nice discussion. He was very kind to us. The Speaker very patiently heard us and said he will look into the matter,” Mr. Banerjee said. Mr. Singh and Mr. Raja too said that it was a fruitful meeting. 

The Opposition members said they would continue to attend the JPC meetings, since their grievances were under the Speaker’s consideration. 

The MPs also submitted a joint memorandum signed by the Congress’s Mohammad Jawed and Imran Masood, the DMK’s Raja, and the AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi, apart from Mr. Singh and Mr. Banerjee, detailing their concerns. They have accused Mr. Pal of fixing the dates of the sittings without consulting the members and not giving them reasonable pause to scrutinise the submissions made by the witnesses. They said they would “disassociate” themselves from the panel since they were being “stonewalled”.

The committee’s proceedings have been stormy amid frequent protests from Opposition members over a host of issues, while the BJP members have accused them of deliberately trying to scuttle its work.