An intervention application is a request made by someone who is not originally part of a case but wants to join the proceedings because the decision may affect their rights or interests.
New Delhi, April 10: Intervention applications have been filed in the Supreme Court in support of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, stating that the changes made through this amendment are in consonance with the Constitution of India.
An intervention application is a request made by someone who is not originally part of a case but wants to join the proceedings because the decision may affect their rights or interests.
These applications were filed by Satish Kumar Aggarwal, a member of Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha, and Vishnu Gupta, the National President of Hindu Sena, opposing petitions that challenge the constitutional validity of the Waqf (Amendment) Act.
The applicants argued that:
“A perusal of Section-40 of the Waqf Act, 1995 would show that the Waqf board was empowered to collect information regarding any property which it has reason to believe to be a Waqf property and such property used to be declared as Waqf property. Therefore, in garb of Section-40, the Waqf board acquired of lakhs acres land of others in the name of Waqf property. Therefore, the Parliament was compiled to exercising its legislative power to ament the provision of the Waqf Act, 1995.”
These applications were filed through advocate Barun Sinha.
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The applicants further submitted that:
“No law can be framed on the basis of religious practices with unfettered power to acquire land and property of others.”
They also claimed that the new amendments do not violate any rights of the Muslim community, stating:
“Therefore, the Waqf Act, 1954 and subsequent thereto Waqf Act, 1995 are against the very scheme of the Constitution of India. Be it as it may, the Parliament has amended the draconian provisions by the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2024. Therefore, there is no infirmity, illegality in the amendment.”
The Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna, along with Justices Sanjay Kumar and KV Viswanathan, will hear the batch of petitions challenging the Act on April 16.
The Central Government has also filed a caveat application in the Supreme Court, asking the court to hear its side before passing any order. A caveat application ensures that no decision is made without giving the concerned party a chance to present their case.
Several petitions have been filed in the apex court against the new law. The petitioners say it discriminates against the Muslim community and violates their fundamental rights.
The President of India, Droupadi Murmu, gave her assent to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, on April 5, after it was passed in both Houses of Parliament, following intense debates.
The following individuals and organisations have moved the Supreme Court challenging the amendment:
- Asaduddin Owaisi, MP from AIMIM
- Mohammad Jawed and Imran Pratapgarhi, MPs from Congress
- Amanatullah Khan, AAP MLA
- Chandra Shekhar Azad, MP and President of Azad Samaj Party
- Zia Ur Rehman Barq, Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal
- Maulana Arshad Madani, President of Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind
- Samastha Kerala Jamiatul Ulema, a Kerala-based Sunni scholars’ group
- Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI)
- Indian Union Muslim League (IUML)
- Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR), an NGO
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) also approached the Supreme Court, stating that it:
“strongly objected to the amendments passed by Parliament for being arbitrary, discriminatory and based on exclusion”.
Additionally, Manoj Jha and Faiyaz Ahmad, Rajya Sabha MPs from Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), have challenged the Act saying it allows excessive government interference in Muslim religious endowments. RJD MLA Muhammad Izhar Asfi from Bihar has also filed a similar petition.
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The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party, currently in power in Tamil Nadu, also approached the Supreme Court through its MP A Raja, who was a part of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Waqf Bill.
Key Provisions of the Bill
- Renaming the Act: The Bill proposes to rename the existing legislation to the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development Act, 1995, reflecting its broader objective of enhancing the management and efficiency of waqf boards and properties.
- Formation of Waqf:
- The current Act allows waqf to be formed by declaration, long-term use (waqf by user), or endowment.
- The Bill stipulates that only a person practicing Islam for at least five years may declare a waqf and must own the property being declared.
- It removes the provision of waqf by user, where properties could be deemed as waqf based solely on prolonged use for religious purposes.
- It adds that waqf-alal-aulad (family waqf) must not result in the denial of inheritance rights to the donor’s heirs, including female heirs.
- Survey of Waqf Properties:
- The Act provides for the appointment of a Survey Commissioner to conduct surveys of waqf properties.
- The Bill replaces the Survey Commissioner with the District Collector or an officer above the rank of collector chosen by the state to determine the ownership of property and submit a report to the state government.
- Government Property as Waqf:
- The Bill states that any government property identified as waqf will cease to be so.
- The District Collector will determine ownership in case of uncertainty and update the revenue records accordingly.
- Composition of Waqf Boards and Councils:
- The Act constituted the Central Waqf Council to advise the central and state governments and waqf boards, with the Union Minister in charge of waqf as the ex-officio chairperson.
- The Bill proposes that two members of the Council must be non-Muslims. Members of Parliament, former judges, and eminent persons appointed to the Council need not be Muslims. Representatives of Muslim organizations, scholars in Islamic law, and chairpersons of waqf boards must be Muslims. Of the Muslim members, two must be women.
- The Act allowed for the establishment of separate waqf boards for Sunni and Shia sects if Shia waqf constituted over 15% of all waqf properties or waqf income in the state.
- The Bill also allows for separate waqf boards for the Aghakhani and Bohra sects.
- Waqf Tribunals:
- Under the Act, decisions of the waqf tribunal were final, and appeals against its decisions in courts were prohibited.
- The Bill omits the provisions that granted finality to the tribunal’s decisions, allowing orders to be appealed before High Courts within 90 days.
