Srinagar | WTNS | Sep 12:Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulama (MMU) Jammu & Kashmir and Muslim personal law board on Thursday held an extraordinary meeting to discuss in depth the implications and possibilities regarding the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, presented by the Government of India, along with the concerns and apprehensions Muslims are facing in this regard.

According to a statement issued to the Wilayat Times, the meeting also seriously deliberated on issues such as inter-sectarian and intra-Muslim unity, the various challenges and difficulties faced by the Kashmiri society, the widespread use and abuse of drugs, the youth’s growing distance from Islamic teachings, the continued house arrest of Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir Dr Moulvi Muhammad Umar Farooq and other important matters.

The meeting was chaired by Grand Mufti Nasir Islam Faruqi, with prominent scholars including Dr Abdul Latif Al-Kindi, Moulana Shaukat Hussain Keing, Agha Syed Mujtaba Al-Mosavi, Mufti Ejaz-ul-Hassan Banday, Professor Muhammad Yaseen Kirmani, Moulana Khurshid Ahmad Qanoongo, Moulana Abdul Latif Bukhari, Syed Muhammad Yusuf Rizvi, Ghulam Ali Gulzar, Muhammad Aslam Andrabi, Moulana M.S. Rahman Shams, and other members addressing the gathering.

The comprehensive resolution unanimously passed at this stage is as:

This session strongly reacts against the Government of India’s attempts to legalise the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, firmly opposing and rejecting it in its entirety.

This session makes it clear to the Government of India that the true owner of all Waqf properties, lands and estates is Allah Almighty, and the concept of Waqf is inherently tied to the Islamic system of beliefs. Any governmental interference undermines the fundamental concept of Waqf, and such efforts are, therefore, unacceptable to Muslims.

This session also emphasises that Waqf properties fall under divine law and are part of Muslim Personal Law. Therefore, any interference or amendments made by the government through various acts and amendments are unacceptable to Muslims.

In this regard, the Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulama Jammu & Kashmir has already sent a detailed and reasoned letter to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), expressing its concerns and labeling the bill as anti-Muslim. The council has also clarified that, if necessary, it is willing to present its position and viewpoint directly to the JPC through a meeting.

Therefore, this session demands from the central government and the JPC to immediately address the concerns of the Muslim community, and the only solution to this is the withdrawal of the proposed bill.

This session condemns the continued house arrest of the leader of the MMU, Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir, during the sacred month of Rabi al-Awwal and calls for his immediate release so that he may fulfill his duties toward the public as usual.

The meeting also appealed to Imams of mosques, Khanqahs, Imambargahs and religious scholars in Jammu and Kashmir to present and support the aforementioned resolution in their congregations during Friday prayers.