KOZHIKODE: Various Muslim organisations have welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision, in its interim order on Monday, to stay certain provisions in the Waqf (Amendment) Act.
IUML state president Panakkad Syed Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal said it is heartening to know that the SC has found merit in the reservations raised by the party and other organisations about the Act. He said the court has made it clear that the provision that a person has to follow Islam for five years before declaring his or assets as waqf will leave enough room for misuse of power.
“It is also a great achievement that the provision to allow district collectors to fix the property right in revenue records has also been stayed,” Thangal said.
Samastha Kerala Jem-Iyyathul Ulama president Syed Muhammad Jiffri Muthukoya Thangal said the order will give a boost to public confidence in the judiciary. The fight against the Act would continue through both legal and political means, he added.
IUML national general secretary P K Kunhalikutty said the order has upheld the fundamental rights on faith enshrined in the Constitution.
Addressing reporters, he termed the order a reminder that it is impossible to pass any law just because someone has a majority in Parliament.
Sunni leader and Indian Grand Mufti Kanthapuram A P Aboobacker Musaliyar said the order strengthens the democratic fight to protect constitutional rights. He said the government’s intervention in waqf amounted to an affront on the right to follow a faith and questioned the very basic foundation of tolerance and civil rights.
Jama’at-e-Islami Kerala amir P Mujeeb Rehman said the order comes as a great relief.
“We demand the Act be cancelled entirely,” he said.
The court has granted interim stay to many of the controversial provisions in the Act, but there are other provisions that remain a concern. He hoped that those issues will also be addressed in the final judgement.
The Dakshina Kerala Jem-Iyyathul Ulama said the court’s intervention has protected constitutional principles and the heritage of Waqf institutions. “The freedom and rights of Waqf institutions must be protected. This verdict has given hope to the community,” said president K P Abubacker Hasrat and general secretary Thodiyur Muhammed Kunju Maulavi in a statement.