Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, Pinarayi Vijayan, on Friday accused the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) government of completely surrendering to the BJP and Sangh Parivar agenda. He said the decision to implement the revised Waqf law, which mandates the inclusion of two non-Muslim members in the state Waqf Board, amounts to a direct surrender to the BJP’s agenda.
Addressing a press conference here on Friday, Pinarayi Vijayan said the state government has abandoned its original opposition to the controversial amendments to the Waqf Act.
He claimed the government had formally assured the Kerala High Court that it would enforce the amended law exactly as written, “without missing a single dot or comma.” Vijayan described the government’s sudden alignment with the petitioners and the resulting court order as a deeply shocking development.
He claimed that mandating the inclusion of non-Muslims breaks a long-standing secular convention under which religious properties are managed internally by their respective communities. He further alleged that, among the non-BJP-ruled states, only Kerala has agreed to implement this provision.
Vijayan charged that the Centre’s extensive 2025 amendments to the Waqf Act were explicitly designed to advance the Sangh Parivar’s objectives. He pointed out that the revised law mandates the inclusion of non-Muslim members in the management of Muslim religious endowments.
“The Waqf Board is an institution belonging exclusively to the Muslim community. The Sangh Parivar has attempted to infiltrate its administration by bringing in non-Muslims. That is what the BJP government has implemented through the amended law,” he said.
Reading from a government statement submitted to the High Court on July 14, Vijayan noted the government’s willingness to reconstitute the Board in accordance with Section 14 of the Unified Waqf Act.
He claimed that a Muslim League-nominated Special Government Pleader filed the document, with the Advocate General personally appearing to support the government’s stand.
The Board currently functions with 11 nominated members, whereas only five members are required to constitute a legal quorum. Vijayan argued that there was no technical necessity to fill the vacancies urgently while the validity of the law is still under challenge before the Supreme Court.
When asked about Higher Education Minister Roji M. John’s appeal to oppose the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill in Parliament, Vijayan countered that Kerala’s university system is already facing a crisis from within.
He blamed the Governor for causing severe disruption, particularly in matters relating to MG University and the appointment of vice-chancellors. He also criticised the UDF for remaining silent on the issue.
The CPM leader further alleged that the reconstituted university senates are being packed with Sangh Parivar loyalists.
Pinarayi Vijayan also urged the state government to firmly resist the Governor’s interference in universities, claiming that the administration has failed to protect higher education institutions from such disruptive actions.