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There was a buzz in political circles that the government would want to bring the Bill to send a message before Delhi elections but it has now been learnt that the Centre has put the report tabling on the backburner
Members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Waqf Amendment Bill headed by its Chairman Jagdambika Pal during the submission of its report to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. (PTI)
The Waqf Amendment Bill, 2024 — examined for over six months, its report adopted by the committee last week and also approved by the Lok Sabha Speaker — was initially scheduled to be tabled in Parliament on Monday but, according to sources, it is now unlikely to be presented in this part of the Budget Session.
There was a buzz in political circles that the government would want to bring the Bill to send a message before Delhi elections but it has now been learnt that the Centre has put the report tabling on the backburner.
The committee report, which runs into 428 pages, has seen severe criticism coming in from the members of opposition parties who had submitted dissent notes. Congress MP Nasir Hussain and AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi have accused the government of stifling their voices after some portions of their notes submitted to the committee were cut.
“The entire report is of 428 pages. How can a 229-page dissent note submitted by Owaisi be accommodated?” a source in the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) asked News18.
Lok Sabha Member of Parliament and JPC Chairman Jagdambika Pal has cited Parliament procedures and rules to cut short the dissent note. This allows the chairman to delete or edit any words or phrases that could be called irrelevant or unparliamentary.
Further, Rule No 303 (5) and 303(6) of Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha state: “A minute of dissent shall be couched in temperate and decorous language and shall not refer to any discussion in the Select Committee nor cast aspersion on the Committee. If in the opinion of the Speaker a minute of dissent contains words, phrases or expressions which are unparliamentary or otherwise inappropriate, the Speaker may order such words, phrases or expressions to be expunged from the minute of dissent.” Notwithstanding anything contained in (1) above, the Speaker shall have the power to order expunctions in like circumstances or to review all decisions regarding expunction from minutes of dissent and the decision of the Speaker shall be final.”
Therefore, the committee has decided to omit 101 pages from Owaisi’s note. In fact, statements within the note, which were critical of the chairman or the conduct of the chairman, have also been removed as per the rules and procedures.
“Being critical of the Bill and opposing the Bill is understandable, but putting out criticism of the committee’s chairman is against the rules. Therefore, the chairman has the right to remove this,” a source from the JPC confirmed to News18.
In the report adopted by the committee, 281 pages of dissent from eight notices have been allowed to form a part of the final report and only 20 have been redacted.
After having held more than three-dozen meetings in the last few months, since its first meeting on August 22, 2024, the JPC last week adopted the report to the Bill that it was examining. This report incorporates 14 amendments proposed by BJP and its NDA partners.
Multiple amendments being moved by the Opposition were negated, leading to opposition MPs filing detailed dissent notes. It is now being speculated that the government may bring the report before Parliament in the second part of the Budget Session in March and after the revised Bill is approved by the cabinet. It is likely that the Bill will get introduced again, and the government will try for its passage.
