The Supreme Court has been approached with a public interest litigation (PIL) that contests several provisions of the Waqf Act of 1995 and certain sections of the Waqf (Amendment) Act of 2025. The plea claims these legal frameworks discriminately favor Islamic communities, thereby seeking equal rights and protections for Hindu and other non-Islamic property owners.

The petitioner, Parul Khera, asserts that the 1995 Waqf Act offers privileged status to Waqf properties, a benefit not extended to Trusts, Mutts, Akharas, and other societies. Furthermore, it grants expansive and unchecked authority to Waqf Boards to register any property as Waqf property.

The petitioner argues that granting such special rights and powers to Waqf properties and the associated boards contravenes the principles enshrined in Articles 14, 15, 25, 300-A, and 323-A of the Indian Constitution, undermining the nation’s secular framework.

The PIL highlights that Waqf Boards possess extraordinary powers in matters of property encroachment, as specified in Sections 54 and 55, and requires a two-month notice before initiating a lawsuit, a privilege not afforded to the Trustees, Managers, Shebaits, Mahants, or individuals overseeing Trusts and religious properties. The petitioner emphasizes that this differential treatment is a clear violation of Articles 14, 15(1), and 25 of the Constitution.

It is contended that the Waqf Act lacks provisions to protect Hindu and other non-Islamic religious communities from having their properties classified as Waqf. This omission leads to unjust discrimination against these communities, breaching Articles 14, 15, 25, 27, and 300-A.

The plea also asserts that over the past decade, Waqf Boards have illegally seized lands and declared them as Waqf properties. Notably, the Union Minister for Minority Affairs revealed in a response to the Rajya Sabha on February 7, 2022, that a total of 785,934 immovable properties have been registered on the Waqf portal.

Citing the Sachar Committee’s report, which indicated approximately 490,000 registered Waqf properties encompassing about 600,000 acres, the PIL claims that current estimates show the total area of Waqf properties across various states exceeding 1.2 million acres, nearly four times the size of the National Capital Territory of Delhi.

The PIL further contends that certain sections of the Waqf Act, 1995, do not align with the fundamental rights outlined in Articles 14, 25, 27, and 323-A, as they fail to provide adequate safeguards against the unjust designation of properties as Waqf.

It states, “The provisions of the Waqf Act, 1995, are inconsistent with natural justice principles, lacking sufficient provisions to allow affected parties a chance to contest the classification of their properties as Waqf properties. This absence of checks facilitates arbitrary and unlawful exercises of authority in declaring any asset as Waqf.”

Regarding the 2025 Amendment Act, the petitioner argues that the discriminatory elements of the Waqf Act, 1995, remain unaltered, leading to ongoing injustices and unlawful property seizures by Waqf Boards targeting other communities.

A three-judge bench led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna, alongside Justices Sanjay Kumar and KV Viswanathan, is scheduled to hear a series of petitions challenging the 2025 Amendment on April 16.

Notably, among those contesting the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, are Congress leader and Lok Sabha member Mohammad Jawed, who participated in the Joint Parliamentary Committee reviewing the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024; Asaduddin Owaisi, Chief of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen; Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan; Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind President Maulana Arshad Madani; representatives from the Samastha Kerala Jamiatul Ulama; the Social Democratic Party of India; and the NGO Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR).

These petitioners challenge the constitutionality of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, citing violations of fundamental rights protected under Articles 14 (Right to equality before the law), 25 (freedom to practice religion), 26 (freedom to manage religious affairs), 29 (minority rights), and 300A (right to property), and call for an urgent review due to perceived unwarranted government interference in Waqf matters.