Lok Sabha: Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi leads Opposition charge in Waqf debate

Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on Wednesday accused the government of using the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, as a tool to “dilute the Constitution, defame minority communities, divide Indian society, and disenfranchise minorities”.

Speaking during a debate in the Lok Sabha on the proposed legislation, Gogoi also challenged Union law minister Kiren Rijiju’s claim that the UPA government had “transferred 123 properties to the Delhi Waqf Board” before the 2014 general elections.

Demanding evidence, he accused Rijiju of misleading the House. “Whatever he spoke about the UPA government with reference to 2013 is a complete lie. We demand Rijiju to authenticate his claims. He levelled accusations and misled repeatedly,” Gogoi asserted, also criticising Speaker Om Birla for not intervening. “He misled the House with political accusations,” the Congress MP, who is also the deputy leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, alleged.

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The Speaker intervened and rejected Gogoi’s complaint. “How could you accuse the House of not objecting to the Union minister? I already gave the ruling of not allowing points of order during the discussions, and it is final,” Birla said.

Rijiju countered by challenging Gogoi to specify exactly which part of his statement was misleading. “Do not make any blanket accusations and refer to the specific point,” he said. In response, Gogoi reiterated his objection, referencing Rijiju’s statement about the UPA government’s role in the 2013 Waqf-related decision.

The dispute stemmed from Rijiju’s remarks in the Lok Sabha earlier in the day while tabling the Bill, when he said, “Congress said anyone could create a Waqf in 2013. On March 5, 2014, the UPA government transferred 123 prime properties to the Delhi Waqf Board just before the elections.”

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Gogoi further accused the BJP of lacking sensitivity toward minorities and questioned the ruling party’s representation of minority MPs in the Lok Sabha. He pointed out that the Union's minority affairs ministry had held five meetings on the bill but never discussed the need for a new Waqf law.

“There were discussions on the Wamsi portal in the meetings. But the new Waqf Bill was never demanded in those meetings,” he said.

Gogoi further raised concerns over the Bill’s requirement for a “certificate of religion”. “Will they ask for such certificates from other religious communities? Is it not against the Constitution?” he questioned.

Accusing the government of reviving colonial-era tactics, he highlighted the Muslim community’s role in India’s independence struggle. “When you were not in favor of the Quit India movement, they supported it. When you were writing mercy petitions to the British government, they were sacrificing their lives in Malta and Egypt,” he said.

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Further disputing the government’s defense of the JPC process, Gogoi claimed that opposition voices were ignored. “We saw many JPCs, but never one like this, where a clause-by-clause discussion of the bill did not take place,” he argued.

He also warned the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), an NDA ally, about the removal of Section 107 of the Waqf Act, 1995, from the amendment bill. Drawing parallels with Andhra Pradesh’s Limitation Act, 1963, he said, “Provisions similar to Andhra Pradesh’s act are being removed from the bill. You will have to be answerable to the citizens of your state later.”