NEW DELHI: From renaming the Waqf Act to providing representation for women and a separate Board of Auqaf for Boharas and Aghakhanis, the government has proposed several amendments to the Waqf Act, 1995. Significantly, the proposed bill has omitted the contentious section 40 relating to the powers of the Board to decide if a property is Waqf property. The Bill is expected to be tabled in Parliament this week. The Opposition parties said that they would oppose the Bill.To ensure the representation of women, the Bill proposes to provide for a broad-based composition of the Central Waqf Council and the State Waqf Boards and ensure the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims. It will also provide for the establishment of a separate Board of Auqaf for Boharas and Aghakhanis.The government said that to overcome the shortcomings and enhance the efficiency of the administration and management of the waqf properties, it has proposed the renaming of the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development Act, 1995.The government said that the Waqf Act of 1995 was enacted to provide for the better administration of Auqaf and matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. However, during the implementation of the Act, it is felt that the Act has not proved effective in improving the administration of auqaf.The amended bill will ensure that the creation of waqf-alal-aulad does not lead to the denial of inheritance rights to women.Other provisions in the Bill include providing the functions of the Survey Commissioner to the Collector or any other officer not below the rank of Deputy Collector duly nominated by the Collector for the survey of waqf properties. This will effectively curtail the power of the board.The bill also provides for the representation of Shia, Sunni, Bohra, Agakhani, and other backward classes among Muslim communities. It also proposes to streamline the registration of waqfs through a central portal and database. It will also provide for a detailed procedure for mutation as per revenue laws, with due notice to all concerned before recording any property as Waqf property;Further, the bill proposed to decrease the annual contribution from seven percent to five percent. payable to the Board by mutawalli of every waqf having a net annual income of not less than five thousand rupees;It will also provide for the filing of waqf accounts by mutawallis to the Board through a central portal for better control over their activities. The bill has also suggested reforming the Tribunal structure with two members and providing for appeals against the orders of the Tribunal to the High Court within a specified period of ninety days.It has also omitted section 107 so as to make the Limitation Act, 1963, applicable to any action under the Act, and the omission of sections 108 and 108A relating to special provisions as to evacuee waqf properties and Act to have an overriding effect.The Act was last amended in 2013.
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