Cabinet clears proposed changes to Waqf bill: Here are the key amendements

Waqf Boards currently control 8.7 lakh properties spanning 9.4 lakh acres across India

The Union cabinet has given its approval to the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2024, based  on the basis of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) report which was tabled in Parliament on February 13, according to News18.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill had proposed 44 changes to laws regulating central and state Waqf boards, which manage Muslim charitable properties in India. The report was tabled in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha during the first half of the 2025 Budget Session in Parliament amid uproar by the Opposition, leading to brief adjournments of proceedings in both the Houses.

Union Minister of Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju moved the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 in Lok Sabha last year to amend the Waqf Act, 1995, and alter the powers of the Waqf board amid objections from the opposition parties.  According to the ministry of minority affairs, the objective of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, is to amend the Waqf Act, 1995, to redress the issues and challenges in regulating and managing Waqf properties.

The Amendment Bill seeks to improve the administration and management of waqf properties in India. It aims to overcome the shortcomings of the previous act and enhance the efficiency of Waqf boards by introducing changes such as renaming the Act, updating the definitions of waqf, improving the registration process, and increasing the role of technology in managing waqf records.

According to News18, the following changes have been approved.

1) Two Muslim women will continue to be included as members in both the State Waqf Boards (Section 14) and the Central Waqf Council (Section 9) to ensure Muslim women’s empowerment and participation in waqf management.

2) The state Waqf Boards will now include one member from the Muslim OBC community

3) The state Government may establish separate Waqf Boards for Aghakhani and Bohra communities

4) In Waqf Alal Aulad (family waqfs), women’s inheritance rights will be safeguarded. A waqif can dedicate property only after ensuring that female heirs receive their rightful share

Waqf Boards currently control 8.7 lakh properties spanning 9.4 lakh acres across India with an estimated value of 1.2 lakh crores. India has the largest waqf holding in the World. Further, Waqf Board is the largest landowner in India after the Armed Forces and the Indian Railways.