Bengaluru MP Tejasvi Surya hails Deve Gowda’s participation in Waqf Bill debate: ‘Even at 91, he inspires us all’

Bengaluru South MP and BJP leader Tejasvi Surya on Friday commended former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda for his active participation in the Rajya Sabha debate on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, which went on for over 17 hours and concluded at around 4 am.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Surya lauded the 91-year-old Janata Dal (Secular) leader, calling him an inspiration to all parliamentarians.

"Known as the House of Elders, most MPs from the Rajya Sabha are senior citizens. Former PM Deve Gowda Ji, even at the age of 91, actively participated in the debate and inspired all of us," Surya wrote.

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Read his full post here:

Taking a dig at some MPs, without naming anyone, Surya added, “Those who wink, disrupt, heckle and show their outright disinterest in Parliament, despite being elected to represent the people's voices, should learn from this.”

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, which was under discussion for much of the day and night, was eventually passed in the early hours of Friday morning.

Rajya Sabha on Friday passed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2025 after a fiery debate on the issue. The debate, which began on Thursday afternoon, went well past midnight.

128 members voted for the bill while 95 members voted against it, chairman Jagdeep Dhankar said, while adding that the final numbers were subject to correction. The debate on the bill lasted for more than 12 hours.

With the upper house passing the bill, it has now officially got the approval of the Parliament and will now go to the President of India for her final assent before becoming a law. The Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2024 has also been passed in the Rajya Sabha by a voice vote.

Earlier on Thursday, the Lok Sabha had given the nod to the bill after a similarly long debate. While the Narendra Modi government has repeatedly defended the bill, the opposition has termed it ‘unconstitutional’ and an ‘attack on religious freedom’.

(Also Read: Rajya Sabha passes Waqf Amendment Bill, 2025 a day after Lok Sabha nod)