“Opposition’s Monopoly on Waqf Ended, Public Welfare Now Priority”: Jyotiraditya Scindia Defends Waqf Amendment Bill 2025

New Delhi: Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has launched a sharp attack on opposition parties for their resistance to the recently passed Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, asserting that the legislation aims to end long-standing monopolies and misuse of Waqf properties. He accused opposition leaders of trying to maintain control for vested interests, which the BJP-led Centre is determined to dismantle in favour of public welfare.

“The opposition wants to run a monopoly and wants to misuse things. The Prime Minister and the BJP government will expose them. Using Waqf properties for the welfare of the public is the ideology of everyone. Some people did not want the good use of Waqf, and this Bill has ended their monopoly,” Scindia told reporters.

Scindia’s comments come in the wake of widespread protests and legal challenges to the bill, with parties such as Congress, AIMIM, and AAP moving the Supreme Court to contest its provisions.

On April 5, President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and also to the Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2025. The amendments are designed to streamline the management of Waqf properties, enhance transparency, and introduce scientific and modern methods for property development, registration, and dispute resolution. The Mussalman Wakf Act of 1923 was officially repealed.

Defending the legislative move, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the amendment would ensure “dignity for all, especially the marginalised,” and accused the Congress of promoting “appeasement politics.”

“Appeasement politics has been a major obstacle to India’s progress. Congress used this for political gains while the common Muslim was left with neglect, illiteracy, and unemployment,” PM Modi said.

However, not all voices are in agreement. In Manipur’s Bishnupur, members of the Muslim community took to the streets, protesting against the Waqf Amendment Act and demanding its immediate repeal. Demonstrators held placards and shouted slogans, reflecting growing unrest over the bill’s implications for religious and community-owned properties.

With legal battles now unfolding in the Supreme Court and public protests rising, the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 has emerged as a key political flashpoint.