Opposition members suspended from Parliamentary panel amid row over Waqf Amendment Bill

All opposition members of the parliamentary panel on the Waqf Amendment Bill were suspended for a day on Friday, following accusations of procedural misconduct and continuous protests against panel Chairman Jagdambika Pal. The suspended members include prominent leaders such as Kalyan Banerjee, Mohammad Jawed, A Raja, Asaduddin Owaisi, Naseer Hussain, and others.

BJP member Nishikant Dubey moved the motion for suspension, which was adopted by the committee. BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi criticized the opposition members' conduct, calling it "disgusting," alleging they created disruptions and used unparliamentary language during the meeting.

The contentious meeting began with opposition leaders claiming insufficient time to study the proposed changes to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024. The heated exchanges led to a brief adjournment of the session, but tensions remained high when the meeting resumed, particularly as a delegation led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the religious head of Kashmir, appeared before the committee.

Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee and Congress MP Naseer Hussain later stormed out, calling the proceedings a "farce." They accused the BJP of rushing the acceptance of the report on the Waqf Amendment Bill with political motives ahead of the Delhi elections.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha by Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju in August 2024, seeks to amend the Waqf Act, 1995, to address issues in regulating and managing waqf properties. Opposition leaders demanded more time to examine the proposed amendments, suggesting the clause-by-clause review scheduled for January 27 be deferred to January 30 or 31.

The suspension of opposition members underscores the intensifying political tussle over the bill, with both sides accusing each other of undermining parliamentary decorum and due process.