Waqf Amendment Bill 2025

Yesterday, the Lok Sabha passed the Waqf Amendment Bill 2025, which proposes significant changes to the governance and management of Waqf properties in India. This legislation seeks to amend the Waqf Act of 1995, aiming to enhance the administration of Waqf properties while addressing long-standing issues within the system. Initially introduced in 2024, the bill underwent scrutiny by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).

What is a Waqf Property?

A Waqf is a property donated by Muslims for a specific religious, charitable, or private purpose. Ownership of the property is considered to belong to God, while its benefits are directed to the specified purposes.

• Establishment: A Waqf can be established through a written deed, legal instrument, or orally.
• Use and Permanence: A property may be recognized as Waqf if it has been used for religious or charitable purposes over an extended period.
• Irrevocability: Once a property is designated as Waqf, it can not be reclaimed or altered by donor.

Not all Islamic countries have Waqf properties. Countries like Turkey, Libya, Sudan, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Tunisia and Iraq lacks Waqfs. Waqf Boards in India oversee approximately 8.7 Lakh properties covering around 9.4 Lakh acres, with an estimated value of Rs 1.2 Lakh Crore.

Waqf has been existed in India since the early days of Delhi Sultanate. In the late 19^th century, the Privy Council criticized Waqf. After independence, the Waqf Act of 1954 was introduced to regulate and manage Waqf properties across India. It established the Central Waqf Council of India, established in 1964 as a statutory body, to oversee the work under various State Waqf Boards, established under Waqf Act of 1954.

Waqf Act 1995– Following were the key provisions of this act:

• Role of Waqf Bodies: The Act outlines the roles and responsibilities of Waqf Council, State Waqf Boards, and the Chief Executive Officer, along with the duties of Mutawalli (caretaker of Waqf properties).
• Waqf Tribunals: It also defines the authority and limitations of Waqf Tribunals, which function as substitutes for civil courts within their jurisdiction.
• Power of Civil Court: These tribunals hold the same powers and responsibilities as Civil Courts under the Code of Civil Procedure 1908.
• Binding Power: Additionally, their decisions are final and binding, and no civil court is permitted to entertain lawsuits or legal disputes related to matter under the tribunal’s purview.

Now comes the  present Waqf Amendment Bill 2025

This Bill aims to address several challenges in the administration and management of Waqf properties. The Bill introduces several pivotal changes aimed at enhancing the management and inclusivity of Waqf properties in India. The key amendments are as follows:

• Renamed as Umeed: The bill has been renamed as the Umeed Bill, which stands for ‘Unified Management Empowerment Efficiency and Development.
• Inclusion of Non–Muslim Members: To enhance inclusivity, this Bill introduces the provision for the inclusion of non-Muslim representatives in central and State Waqf Boards.
• ‘Waqf By User’ removed: This Bill eliminates the ‘Waqf by use’ provision, which previously allowed properties to be designated as waqf solely based on their long-term use for religious activities. However according to this Bill, all ‘Waqf by user’ properties registered before the bill enactment will retain their status, except for those involved in disputed with government.
• Removal of Section 40: This Bill seeks to abolish Section 40 of the Waqf act, a provision criticized as overly restrictive, as it granted the Waqf Board the authority to designate any property as Waqf land.
• Trusts Excluded from Waqf: The Bill establishes a legal separation between Trusts and Waqfs, ensuring that the trusts created by Muslims, whether before or after the Bill’s enactment, do not fall under Waqf regulations if they are governed by other statutory provisions related to public charities.
• Eligibility for Waqf dedication: Only practicing Muslims for at least 5 years will be allowed to dedicate property to Waqf, reinstating the pre-2013 regulations.
• Protection of Inheritance Rights: This Bill ensures that women and children must receive their rightful inheritance before any property is declared as Waqf, with special safeguard for widows, divorced women, and orphans.
• Application of Limitation Act, 1963: To minimize prolonged legal disputes, this Bill introduces the applicability of Limitation Act 1963, to Waqf properties from the date the amendment comes to effect.
• Protection of Tribal lands: This Bill explicitily prohibits the establishment of Waqf on lands falling under the purview of Schedule V & Schedule VI of the Constitution to safeguard the rights of tribal communities.
• Composition of Waqf Tribunal: The original Bill had proposed two members Waqf tribunal, but as per the JPC recommendation this Amendment Bill of 2025 proposed three member Waqf Tribunal
• Investigation of government Properties: This bill mandates any government land or property claimed as waqf will be investigated by an officer of a rank higher than that of a Collector, ensuring a more transparent and authoritative review process.
• Dispute Resolution: In case of property disputes, a senior government official will have the final authority to determine whether a property belongs to Waqf or the government, replacing the existing Waqf Tribunals.
• Appeal Mechanism: This Bill introduces a provision allowing appeals to the High Court against Waqf Tribunal decisions, addressing the current gap in which the high court is granted only limited revisional powers.
• Enhanced Transparency: This Bill emphasizes better governance of Waqf properties by requiring mutawallis (Waqf property managers) to register all property details on a centralized portal within six months.
• Financial Reforms: To provide Waqf institutions with greater financial flexibility, the bill reduces their mandatory contributions to Waqf Boards from 7% to 5% allowing more funds to be directed toward charitable activities.
• Income Audit: Additionally, institutions generating annual income of over Rs 1 Lakh will undergo government-mandated audits to insure transparency.

In nut shell this Bill has  ensured that the uncontrolled/unconstitutional powers bestowed to Waqf Boards by the previous Congress Governments have been corrected.

Waiting for your review on this blog.

Anil Malik

Mumbai, India

3^rd April 2025