‘We felt humiliated and…’: Opposition MPs pen missive to Speaker after being suspended from Waqf panel meet

Ten Opposition MPs penned a letter to the Speaker on Friday after being suspended from a Parliament meeting on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill. The lawmakers were excluded following vociferous protests and accusations that the chairperson had reduced proceedings to a ‘farce’. The Committee is preparing to adopt its draft report by the end of January.

“When the meeting started today at 11.00 AM, we the members of opposition vehemently raised our voice with utmost respect against the way of conducting the business by the Chairman. We highlighted the unilateral as well as unfair manner of functioning of JPC by ignoring the due process contemplated in the rules,” read an excerpt from their letter.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was referred to the joint committee of Parliament on August 8 following its introduction in the Lok Sabha by Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju. The Bill aims to amend the Waqf Act of 1995 — to address issues and challenges in regulating and managing Waqf properties.

The Opposition MPs had sought more time to allow them to frame their views after studying the views of stakeholders. They also alleged that chairman Jagdambika Pal was steamrolling the agenda at the government's behest with an eye on the upcoming Delhi elections. 

TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee said Pal had informed them on January 21 — when the committee members were in Lucknow meeting stakeholders — that the next meetings would be held on January 24-25. The Opposition leaders had urged the chairman to schedule the meeting January 30 or 31 but to no avail.

“While we put forth these reasonable claims in civilsed manner to the Chairman, he has not even attempted to respond. As we all felt humiliated, we stood and raise our voice democratically to hear our demands. Meanwhile, the Chairman spoke in phone with somebody and suddenly and surprisingly, he ordered our suspension with shouting,” they wrote in a letter to the Speaker on Friday evening.

(With inputs from agencies)

"... It is respectfully submitted that since the erstwhile served notice scheduled for the meeting on 24th and 25th, we the members designed our programmes in the Constituency/States from 27 to 30th as the Parliament Session starts on 31st and thereby prayed for postponement of the 27th meeting.

...A comprehensive study is essentially needed by the JPC to address these issues raised by the stakeholders in holistic manner. In these circumstances rushing the proceedings of the JPC without application of the mind by the Chairman is nothing but a riddle wrapped with hidden malice. It is our opinion that the Chairman of a JPC does not have the power to suspend the members of the Committee. It is therefore prayed that the Chairman of the JPC may kindly be instructed to conduct the proceedings in a transparent and fair manner. The Chairman should postpone the 27th meeting so that the opposition members can get the adequate time and opportunity to put forth our plea/claims without any departure from the rules and procedure to ensure the Parliament democracy on which the Nation still has faith."