New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India on Thursday took on record the assurance given by the Solicitor General of India that no appointments will be made to the Central Waqf Council or State Waqf Boards under the newly passed Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, until the next date of hearing.
A bench of the apex court directed the Centre to file its detailed response within seven days regarding the constitutional challenge raised by various petitioners. The court made it clear that Waqf properties, including those notified as ‘Waqf-by-user’, will not be denotified, and no change will be made by the District Collector with regard to such properties until the matter is heard again.
The hearing on the matter is now scheduled to begin from May 5, 2025, and the Centre has agreed to a day-to-day hearing. The court did not stay the implementation of the Act but has clearly sought clarity from the government before further proceedings.
The Solicitor General, appearing for the Centre, argued that a law passed by Parliament cannot be stayed, and assured the bench that no administrative action under the new amendment will be taken with respect to appointments or Waqf-by-user properties.
Addressing the media after the hearing, AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi reiterated his party’s stand, saying:
“We consider this Act unconstitutional. The Court has said that the Central Waqf Council and the State Waqf Council will not be constituted, and ‘Waqf by user’ cannot be deleted. During the deliberations of the JPC, I gave a report opposing all amendments proposed by the government, and during the debate on the bill, I called the bill unconstitutional. Our legal battle against this Act will continue.”
Earlier, Advocate Barun Kumar Sinha, also appearing in the matter, had pointed out that while the Act hasn’t been stayed, the court’s interim order clearly restricts the government from taking certain administrative actions, particularly on already gazetted Waqf properties.
