No provision in the Constitution: Amit Malviya on ‘striking down’ of Andhra Pradesh Waqf Board

Amaravati, Dec 1 (IANS) BJP leader Amit Malviya has hailed the ‘striking down’ of the Andhra Pradesh State Waqf Board by the state’s NDA government. 

The in charge of BJP’s national information and technology department took to ‘X’ on Sunday to react to the development.

“Andhra Pradesh government strikes down the Waqf Board. There is no provision in the Constitution, which supports the existence of one in a secular India,” he posted.

His comment came amid the ongoing row over Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, which has already been referred to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).

The TDP-led coalition government on Saturday issued an order withdrawing an earlier order issued by the previous government of YSR Congress Party constituting the Waqf Board.

The then government headed by Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy issued an order on October 21, 2023, constituting the 11-member Board. An MLA and an MLC were among the three elected members. The then government had also nominated eight members, including two women.

As some individuals had approached the Andhra Pradesh High Court, challenging the nomination of members, the High Court in its order on November 1, 2023, stayed the election of the chairperson of the State Waqf Board.

After the YSR Congress Party lost power to the NDA in the May 2024 elections, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) nominated its leader Shaik Abdul Aziz as chairman of the State Waqf Board. However, the Board could not be reconstituted apparently due to court cases.

The coalition government in the state comprises, TDP, Jana Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The government’s move to dissolve the Waqf Board came after the Chief Executive Officer of the State Waqf Board brought to its attention the prolonged non-functioning of the Board and the pendency of writ petitions questioning the legality of G.O. Ms. No. 47 dated October 21, 2023, to resolve the litigations and prevent an administrative vacuum.

Minorities Welfare Department Secretary Kati Harshvardhan stated that after careful consideration of the observations made by the High Court and in the interest of maintaining good governance, protection of Waqf properties and ensuring the smooth functioning of the Waqf Board, the government withdrew G.O. Ms. No. 47 with immediate effect.

Minister for Minority Welfare N. Md. Farooq said in a statement that the coalition government withdrew the GO issued by the previous government. He said after some individuals had approached the High Court, challenging the nomination of Waqf Board members, the High Court had passed interim orders to stay the election of the chairperson.

The Minister stated that due to legal issues, there was a vacuum in the functioning of the Waqf Board and to overcome it, the coalition government issued a new GO, withdrawing the earlier GO.