Waqf Amendment Bill Updates: What to expect? Kiren Rijiju Vs Gaurav Gogoi in Lok Sabha; Amit Shah may intervene

Waqf Amendment Bill LIVE: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Centre is all set to table the controversial Waqf Amendment Bill 2025 in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, April 2. Opposition parties strongly oppose the amendments introduced in the bill that seeks to amend the Waqf Act, 1995.

Both the BJP and the Congress issued whips to their MPs to ensure their presence in the House. Will the Lok Sabha pass the Waqf Amendment Bill 2025? The final outcomes may be decided on the majority numbers on the floor.

The bill will be tabled after the Question Hour on Wednesday for consideration and passing, and following that, an 8-hour discussion will be held, which is also subject to an increase.

What is Waqf Amendment Bill

The Waqf Amendment Bill aims to amend the Waqf Act, 1995, seeks to improve the administration and management of waqf properties in India.

It aims to overcome the shortcomings of the previous act and enhance the efficiency of Waqf boards by introducing changes such as renaming the Act, updating the definitions of waqf, improving the registration process, and increasing the role of technology in managing waqf records .

The Waqf Amendment Bill was earlier presented in the Lok Sabha in August 2024, following which a Joint Parliamentary Committee was formed under the leadership of Jagdambika Pal for further consideration.

Track Waqf Amendment Bill 2025 LIVE here:

11:48 am: Aam Aadmi Party issued a three-line whip to Lok Sabha MPs to be present in Parliament today.

11: 45 am: Women in Delhi come out in support of Waqf (Amendment) Bill.

11:27 am: Deputy Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi likley to initiate debate on Waqf amendment bill from Congress’ side in the Lok Sabha. Kiren Rijiju expected to start the government side. Intervention by Amit Shah is expected.

10:30 am: BJP prepares list of 11 speakers, JPC chief likely to open

9:30 am: Union Minister Kiren Rijiju will table the Bill around 12 pm.

9:15 am: The Telugu Desam Party (TDP), a key ally in NDA government, is expected to ask for one key amendment to the Waqf Bill. Sources told India Today and Indian Express that the party will unanimously demand that representation of non-Muslims in the board be left to the discretion of the respective states.

8:23 am: Müfti Shamoon Kazmi, Chairman of the Uttarakhand Madarsa Education Board, said on the Waqf Amendment Bill, “The Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, which will be presented in Parliament today, is a historic moment.

"The people protesting against this bill on the streets today are the same individuals who acted as Congress mediators for 60 years, keeping Muslims as a vote bank. Despite Waqf properties being meant for the poor, they were never utilised for their benefit. Instead, large malls and offices have been built on them. These leaders deceived innocent Muslims and deprived them of education.”

8: 20 am: Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal, Zia ur Rehman Barq, said, “When the government sent it to the JPC, we had some hope that maybe the shortcomings in it would be removed, but it was just a formality, and the report was presented only as per their wish.”

"When this bill comes up in the House, we will strongly oppose it. The government may have majority figures, but its allies know that if they support this bill, they will have to face a lot of consequences in the coming times. That is why we want the government to stop being dictatorial and withdraw this bill...," he added.

8:15 am: Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal, Zia ur Rehman Barq, said, “We are already against the bill. When this bill was first brought in the House, our party and our leader Akhilesh Yadav strongly opposed it.”

He said the reason for opposing this bill is not that the BJP-NDA government is bringing it; we are opposing this bill because there are many things in the bill which is taking away the rights of our people.

8 am: RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said, “This is an unconstitutional Bill. We are people who believe in the Constitution. People of BJP want to impose 'Nagpur ka kanoon'; that is not at all acceptable to us.”

“We believe in 'Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb', the diversity of our country is the beauty of it. From the beginning, we have opposed the Bill in both Houses of Parliament as well as the Bihar Legislative Assembly or Bihar Legislative Council,” Yadav said.

He said the party will oppose it even in the time to come. "Such a Bill will never be acceptable to us. Despite his health condition, Lalu ji joined the protest. So, we are clear that we will never accept the Bill," Tejashwi said.