Hyderabad: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator from Telangana, T Raja Singh, stirred fresh controversy on Sunday after he backed the newly enacted Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, claiming it would put an end to what he described as “land jihad” in the country. Addressing a Ram Navami procession in Hyderabad, Singh said, “Those who used to put up a board (on a land parcel) in the name of ‘land jihad’ by issuing a Waqf notice, as if it was the property of their father, would no longer be able to install such boards because Prime Minister Narendra Modi has passed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill.”
Singh alleged that the Waqf Board’s land holdings had skyrocketed over the years. “When India became independent, the ‘Waqf board people’ had around 4,000 acres of land. How did they get 9,50,000 (9.5 lakh) acres?” he asked, questioning the legitimacy of Waqf property claims across the country. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, became law on Saturday after President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent, following intense debates in both Houses of Parliament. The legislation has been widely debated, with several political leaders and religious organisations challenging its provisions.
Singh claimed that the law was not meant to harm the Muslim community. “Muslims should understand that this law will not take away their lands,” he said, citing Modi’s inclusive slogan “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” to defend the amendments. He also launched a scathing attack on AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, who has filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the new law. “Owaisi is the biggest enemy of Muslims,” Singh said. “Him going to the Supreme Court will not change anything.”
Owaisi’s petition argues that the amendments dilute the safeguards provided to Waqfs and other religious endowments, including those belonging to Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs. Meanwhile, Singh used the occasion to push for his long-standing ideological demand, declaring, “It is the demand of every Hindu that India be declared a Hindu Rashtra.” The Ram Navami procession, led by Singh, began in the afternoon and continued late into the night amid tight security arrangements.
