Union Minister and Leader of the House in the Rajya Sabha JP Nadda hit out at the Opposition on Thursday for opposing the Waqf Amendment Bill, saying the basic aim of this legislation is to bring in reforms and proper management of Waqf properties.

Speaking on the Bill in the Rajya Sabha, Nadda said, “I stand here in support of the Bill and hope that the House will also support it.”

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“The basic mantra of this Bill is to bring transparency and accountability,” he asserted, adding, “Because between 2013 and 25, this law was in the wrong direction, it has caused a lot of harm to the Muslim brothers. The land mafia has made a lot of money out of it,” Nadda said.

The Union minister further said that from 1913 till 2013, Waqf had 18 lakh hectares of properties. From 2013 till now, 21 lakh hectares of land were added to Waqf properties, he said. “To prevent the misuse of these lands and properties, we proposed an amendment to the Waqf Act of 2013. It is important to recognise that the law is an evolving process,” he added.

He further said that the government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi is following all democratic norms.

Criticising the Opposition for its stand on the Bill, the minister said, “You (the Opposition) asked for the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), and we formed it. In 2013, when the JPC was formed for the Waqf Bill, it had only 13 members whereas the JPC formed under the Modi government had 31 members.

He further said that the JPC held 36 meetings and more than 200 hours have been spent on its activities, directly and indirectly.