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Opposition members boycotted the second phase of the tour, which began on November 9 and was scheduled to end on November 14.
The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 has postponed its study tour to Kolkata Patna, and Lucknow as many of its members are busy in elections, the panel chairman said on Monday.
The JPC has completed the first phase of its study tour to states like Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Gujarat to hear the stakeholders’ version of the Waqf Amendment Bill.
Opposition members boycotted the second phase of the tour, which began on November 9 and was scheduled to end on November 14. The panel held meetings in Guwahati on Saturday and on Monday.
“Many of my friends told me that they have involvement in state elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand. Besides, polling is going on in many states. So, they could not attend the meeting. On their request, I decided to postpone the study tour,” he said. JPC Chairman Jagdambika Pal is here.
He said study tours to Kolkata, Patna, and Lucknow would be rescheduled.
“We want all panel members to participate in the deliberations,” he said.
He said the JPC had a ‘very successful’ meeting in Bhubaneswar on Monday and also in Guwahati two days ago.
During the day, the JPC held discussions with representatives of the Odisha government, the state minority commission, the state Waqf board, senior advocates, social activists and other stakeholders from the state for more than eight hours, Pal said.
“Stakeholders have given their views and opinions on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024. Our Joint Parliamentary Committee will look into these views and incorporate the content in the report”, he told mediapersons today.
Pal said it was the JPC’s responsibility to listen to Odisha’s stakeholders and do so.
“Whether someone joins or not, it makes no difference,” he said when asked about the absence of opposition members from the meeting.
The committee will submit its report to the Lok Sabha Speaker on the last working day of the upcoming winter session of Parliament, he said.
The opposition JPC members have decided to boycott this tour, saying that the chairman is acting arbitrarily and their request to postpone the trip is being ignored.
Since the formation of the JPC in August this year, the panel has held discussions with different stakeholders for more than 100 hours in 25 formal meetings in New Delhi, said Dilip Saikia, a member of the JPC.
“We are taking views and suggestions from various stakeholders including waqf boards, minority commissions and Muslim institutions/organizations,” he said.
The MP said the panel has completed the first leg of its tour to various states including Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra and Gujarat. However, opposition members have boycotted the second phase of the tour starting from Guwahati on Saturday, which is “unfortunate”, Saikia said.
“The waqf board should be responsible for the proper management of the property, to empower the poor Muslims and provide benefits to other sections of society,” he said.
Another member of the panel, Aparajita Sarangi, said, “Approximately 38 lakh hectares of land is occupied by Waqf boards in India. We need to correct the system of governance and administration.” Sarangi, Bhubaneswar MP, said that representatives of 16 organizations have attended today’s meeting. Many individuals have also submitted their views before the panel.
Before Bhubaneswar, the panel visited other major cities, including Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Guwahati, where discussions covered various issues related to the management of Waqf properties and proposed amendments to the Wakf Act, 1995.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from the feed of syndicated news agency – PTI)
- location:
Bhubaneswar, India