New Delhi [India], March 31 : Former Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Alphons KJ on Monday said that the proposed Waqf (Amendment) Bill was "very rational" while calling out the previous implementation of the Waqf Act as "irrational".
He said that the history of the implementation of the Waqf Act depicts that it has benefited a few people only and its implications have been "absolutely communal".
"Kerala Bishops' Council, which is a congregation of all the Bishops of Kerala, have made a request to all the MPs from Kerala to support the Waqf Amendment Bill. Why? Because it's a very rational bill. If you look at the history of how the Waqf Act was implemented in India, we see that it was completely irrational. It has benefited a few people; it has been absolutely communal in its implications," Alphons KJ told ANI.
While talking about the Munambam case, where people bought hundreds of acres of land that Waqf claims to be its property, he said that the central government has brought in the Waqf Amendment Bill to resolve such "anomalies".
"Therefore, the government decided to bring about an amendment that would rectify these big anomalies. If you take the case of Kerala's Munambam, where hundreds of acres of land were bought by citizens after going through all the formalities. However, now, they claim that it is Waqf property. Tomorrow, they can walk upto the parliament building and say, this is Waqf property. This is as simple as that," the former Union Minister said.
"I think the entire Act has many anomalies, which is exactly what the government is trying to rectify. I think all parties, irrespective of political affiliations, should support this," he added.
Meanwhile, Communist Party of India (Marxist) or CPI (M) politburo member Brinda Karat reiterated her party's stand against the proposed amendments to Waqf Act, saying that it was "anti-constitutional" and "unfair" to the minority community.
"The CPM has taken a position against the Waqf Amendment Bill. We believe that it is anti-constitutional and completely unfair to the minority community. People have their own opinions, but definitely, the way that this is sought to be pushed in Parliament is not good for democracy in our country," Karat told ANI.
Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday dismissed the opposition against the proposed Waqf Amendment Bill, saying that those opposing the same are "powerful people" while accusing them of "misguiding" people.
He said that criticising the bill was everyone's right, but it must be substantial.
"Who are those who are opposing this bill? There are a few powerful people who have encroached upon the Waqf properties. They are misguiding people. They are saying the bill is unconstitutional. It's everyone's right to criticise things, but criticism must have some substance in it," Rijiju told ANI.
Speaking about the letter sent by the Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council (KCBC) extending support to the Waqf Amendment Bill and requesting MPs in the state to do the same, Rijiju said that many organisations across religious lines are supporting the bill proposed by the central government.
Kerala BJP President Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that many Christian organisations, including the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council (KCBC), are extending support to the Waqf Amendment Bill proposed by the centre after poor families in the Munambam suburb claimed to be living under the threat of their land being seized by the Waqf board. He urged the MPs in the state to assist people instead of engaging in "appeasement politics".
Earlier, the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council (KCBC) urged MPs to vote in favour of amending the "unconstitutional" and "unjust" provisions of the Waqf Act.
The statement issued by Fr. Thomas Tharayil of the KCBC secretariat said that provisions in the Waqf law, which legitimise the "illegal claims" in such a way that people in Munambam are unable to exercise their revenue claims on the land, need to be amended.
"The Farooq College management, which sold the land to the residents of Munambam, has asserted that the land in question was received as a gift, the MPs should cooperate to amend the waqf bill Which has provisions to raise claims against this. KCBC will send letter to each MPs requesting to vote in favour of amending waqf bill," KCBC said in a statement.
Around 610 families of Munambam, a coastal village in the Ernakulam district, have been protesting against the claim by the Waqf Board on their land.