The Supreme Court will decide on Monday, September 15, whether or not to put the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025 on hold. The decision came over four months after Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai and Justice AG Masih put off their order on a batch of 21 petitions that contended the law was unconstitutional.
The verdict will probably have a huge impact on how Waqf properties are administered throughout all of India. The government argues that Waqf boards possess more land than anyone else in the country, except for the armed forces and Indian Railways. They own roughly 8.72 lakh registered assets that cover about 9.4 lakh acres and are worth about ₹1.2 lakh crore.
Kapil Sibal, Rajeev Dhavan, and Abhishek Manu Singhvi are some of the senior lawyers who support the petitioners. They believe that the new rule goes against Muslims’ constitutional right to conduct their own religious affairs. They believe that the Act punishes the community because the state hasn’t been able to properly survey and register properties since 1954. It also has unjust rules, including the one that stipulates only someone who has followed Islam for at least five years can designate a property as waqf.
On the other hand, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta has said that the law is a necessary move that will make things clearer and deter people from exploiting waqf properties. The government has been pushing for UMEED, a central digital platform where all of these properties can be listed. They argue it will make the information public to everyone and stop anyone from taking charge.
The bench has already declared they don’t agree with certain of the restrictions, such the one that says you can’t make waqf on land owned by Scheduled Tribes. The Center stated this was to keep weak communities safe. The decision on Monday to temporarily freeze the Act’s provisions is a big step in the long-running legal battle over whether the law is constitutional.