New Delhi [India], April 1 : Congress MP Jebi Mather on Tuesday accused the BJP-led Centre of "dividing people" and stated that the Congress will stand for the rights of minorities.
Speaking to ANI, Jebi Mather said, "The attitude of the government is to divide people. We will have to see what changes have been brought in. We will stand for the rights of those affected and minorities..."
Mather also reacted to Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council (KCBC) backing of Waqf Amendment Bill, saying that they have the right to extend their views, but at the same time, the rights of the affected also need to be protected."
"We respect Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council. They have the right to extend their views. We will try to address their concern. At the same time, the rights of the affected also need to be protected," the Congress MP said.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Ramdas Athawale defended the bill saying the opposition was deliberately misdirecting Muslims,
"This bill is in favour of common Muslims. The Opposition is deliberately misleading them. The Waqf Board has always been in the hands of a few people, which does not benefit poor Muslims. The government's intention is that all Muslims should benefit from the properties of the Waqf Board... So my request to all the people of the Muslim community is that this bill is not against them," he said.
Earlri, the 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.