On Thursday, the Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a unanimous resolution demanding the withdrawal of the Wakf Amendment Bill, condemning it as a means to restrict religious freedom and a political ploy against Muslims. The BJP chose to walk out during the resolution’s discussion.

Chief Minister MK Stalin, aware of the ruling DMK’s dependence on minority voters, introduced the resolution calling for the Bill’s complete withdrawal. Aside from the BJP, which has four members in the Assembly, all parties, including the main opposition AIADMK, supported the motion.

Stalin stated, “The Bill is fundamentally misleading to Muslims and aims to dismantle the Wakf Board. It bears resemblance to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which deceives Muslims and Sri Lankan Tamils, and Hindi imposition which undermines non-Hindi speaking states. The National Education Policy also misleads the most vulnerable communities.”

He highlighted several issues with the Bill, asserting that it diminishes the authority and autonomy of both national and state Wakf Boards while granting extensive powers to the Union government. He explained that Wakf land designated as government property would no longer belong to the Wakf Board, and that the requirement for individuals establishing a Wakf Board to have practiced Islam for at least five years could invalidate Boards created by non-Muslims. Additionally, the proposal to form separate Wakf Boards for different Muslim sects, along with the mandate for two non-Muslims to be part of the Board, he argued, represents an intrusion into Muslim religious administration.

Further discussing the problematic aspects of the Bill, Stalin pointed out that the repeal of Section 40 of the Wakf Act would not only strip the Boards of their authority to identify properties but would also transfer that power to the Union government, infringing on the freedom of religion protected by Article 26 of the Constitution. He also noted that the application of the Limitation Act to Wakf properties, the removal of ‘Wakf user’ recognition for properties, and the exclusion of public trusts and charities from being classified as Wakf represent significant violations of rights. These concerns raised by the DMK and other parties during the Joint-Parliamentary Committee discussions were dismissed, Stalin added, warning that the Bill could be introduced at any time since the Union Cabinet has already approved the JPC’s recommendations.