In a fresh opposition vs government tussle, 10 MPs from different political parties were suspended for a day from a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) meeting on the Waqf Amendment Bill. Later, the MPs wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla seeking transparent proceedings, sans haste, in the panel. They also challenged the JPC chief Jagdambika Pal’s power to suspend them.
The opposition MPs also sought adequate time to prepare their responses regarding the proposals under discussion. “The Chairman of the JPC may kindly be instructed to conduct the proceedings in a transparent and fair manner. The Chairman should postpone the 27th meeting so that the Opposition members can get the adequate time and opportunity to put forth our plea/claims without any departure from the rules and procedure to ensure the Parliament democracy on which the Nation still has faith,” said the letter signed by the 10 MPs.
The signatories of the letter are Kalyan Banerjee, Mohammad Jawed, A. Raja, Asaduddin Owaisi, Nasir Hussain, Mohibullah, M. Abdullah, Arvind Sawant, Nadimul Haque, and Imran Masood. Seeking adequate time to present their views, the MPs wrote, “Rushing the proceedings of the JPC without application of the mind by the Chairman is nothing but a riddle wrapped with hidden malice.”
Claiming efforts were being made to suppress debate, the MPs argued that additional time was necessary for discussions, as the amendments proposed in the Bill not only pertain to the extensive land holdings of Waqf Boards across the country but also tie into significant judicial rulings by the High Courts and the Supreme Court.
Earlier in the day, chaos erupted at the JPC meeting when opposition MPs were suspended for the entire session after a heated exchange. The disorder unfolded during deliberations on the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024.
The Opposition MPs alleged that they were not given sufficient time to study the draft which was brought up for discussion. Chaired by BJP MP Jagadambika Pal, the panel meeting was in fact set to hear a delegation led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq from Kashmir.
But before the process, the meeting was disrupted by opposition MPs who raised concerns about “the speed with which the government wanted to pass the bill”, “especially considering the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections”. As the disruption escalated, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey proposed the suspension of 10 opposition MPs for the day. The panel subsequently accepted Dubey’s proposal. (With IANS Inputs)
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