Waqf land more than doubled after 2013 UPA amendment: Amit Shah blasts Oppn in Lok Sabha

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday made a strong intervention in the Lok Sabha debate on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, asserting that 21 lakh acres were added to Waqf Board holdings between 2013 and 2025, after the UPA’s “extreme” amendment to the Waqf Act. “From 1913 to 2013, the Waqf Board had a total of 18 lakh acres of land. Between 2013 and 2025, 21 lakh acres of land were added to it. That is, out of the total 39 lakh acres of land, 21 lakh acres of land is after 2013,” Shah said.

He alleged that the 2013 amendment was passed in haste ahead of elections for appeasement purposes. “Elections were due in 2014 and in 2013, the extreme Waqf law was made overnight for the purpose of appeasement. As a result, 123 properties in Delhi's Lutyens zone were handed over to the Waqf just 25 days before the elections,” Shah said.

Rejecting the opposition's charge of interference in religious matters, Shah clarified that non-Muslim members in Waqf councils and boards are appointed only to oversee administrative matters. “There was no provision earlier to include any non-Muslim person among those who run religious institutions, nor is the NDA government going to do so,” he stated. “Work of non-Muslim members, appointed in the Waqf Board or its premises, will not be related to religious activities,” he added.

He also responded to criticism that the bill may infringe on religious rights. “To those who give big speeches that the right to equality has ended or there will be discrimination between two religions or the religious rights of Muslims will be interfered with, I want to tell them that nothing like this is going to happen,” Shah said. “Everyone has the right to follow their religion, but conversion cannot be done for greed, temptation, and fear.”

Shah accused the opposition of spreading fear among minorities for electoral gains. “It has become a fashion to create fear among the people of the minority community. It is the resolve of the Modi government that no citizen of this country, irrespective of his religion, will be harmed,” he said.

The home minister stressed that the amended Waqf bill would provide legal protection to public, tribal, and archaeological lands, and that no land would automatically become Waqf property by mere declaration. “The government will provide protection to the land of the Archaeological Department and the lands of the tribal community. The personal property of common citizens will also be protected,” he said.

He also underlined the administrative nature of the reforms. “The charity commissioner can be a person of any religion and he will ensure that the Wakf board is run according to the charity law, it is not a religious work, but an administrative work.”

Criticising previous misuse of Waqf assets, Shah said, “There were 20,000 properties given on lease, but according to the records, these properties became zero in 2025. These properties were sold.”

The bill, which proposes district collectors as the final authority for certifying Waqf property, is aimed at ending what Shah called the “collusion” seen under previous governments. “The job of the Waqf Board should be to catch and throw out those who sell Waqf properties,” he said.