Waqf amendment bill live: Akhilesh Yadav, Amit Shah trade barbs in Parliament

Live updates on the Waqf amendment bill in Parliament: The government and opposition are engaged in a showdown in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday as it considers the controversial Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024. The measure aims to reduce complexity, provide transparency, implement technology-driven management, and enhance the administration of Waqf properties.

Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju introduced the bill and said that the Joint Parliamentary Committee's (JPC) consultation process was the biggest parliamentary panel consultation in India's democratic history. Speaker of the Lok Sabha Om Birla has consented to an eight-hour debate on the measure, which would be prolonged once the House's circumstances are well understood.

Amit Shah, the home minister, and other senior BJP officials are probably going to participate in the bill's discussion. To guarantee their presence in the House, the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party have both given their MPs whips. Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Janata Dal (United), Shiv Sena, and LJP (Ram Vilas), important NDA allies, also whipped their leaders, requesting their support for the government's position.