The stormy debates in both Houses of Parliament over the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, which aims to bring transparency to the management of Waqf properties, may have ripple effects on state politics. It would cause discomfiture to the ruling dispensation if the Centre decides to act on a report on the alleged misuse of Waqf lands in Karnataka.
The debates in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha put the focus back on a 13-year-old report by the then chairman of the Karnataka State Minorities Commission (KSMC), Anwar Manippady. The March 2012 report alleged that large-scale encroachment of Waqf properties in the state was gathering dust all these years and was almost forgotten. The report given to the state government termed the alleged irregularities as the “biggest scam” in Karnataka and observed that over Rs 2 lakh crore worth of Waqf properties were either sold or encroached upon, and the irregularities were allegedly supported by influential political/elected representatives. It even named several politicians.
Earlier this week, during the parliamentary debates, BJP lawmakers, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, cited the Manippady report to drive home their point on the alleged mismanagement of Waqf lands and the need to bring in a transparent system to protect them. In the Rajya Sabha, BJP MP Dr Radha Mohan Das Agarwal read out parts of the report, naming some Congress leaders. Prior to that, the report was presented to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), which looked into various aspects of the Bill before it was tabled.
The allegations by BJP leaders faced a strong pushback from Congress members in both Houses of Parliament. While taking into consideration the observations made in the report, due process of law has to be followed to take the allegations to a logical conclusion.
The Manippady report had recommended a thorough probe into the alleged wrongdoings. However, not much progress has been made in all these years. Now that the report is in the domain of the Central Government, and was placed on the floor of the House by the MPs, it has brought the report back into public discourse.
Those in the state government, who were closely following the developments related to the passage of the Bill, are of the view that after the report was discussed in Parliament, the Centre can act on it. According to them, there are plenty of options, including writing to the Governor directing him to initiate action, which he deems fit.
It is not clear if the Centre will pursue the report on the alleged irregularities in Karnataka. However, Manippady, who prepared the report recommending measures to protect Waqf lands, opines that it will be done and all those involved in it will be held accountable. “I kept it alive for 12 years. I knew someday it was going to open up, and lots of heads were going to roll,” says Manippady after the Bill was passed.
If the Centre decides to act on the report, it could put the Congress and the Siddaramaiah government in Karnataka in a tight spot, as many of those named in it are from the Congress. Neither the Congress nor the BJP governments had taken any concrete measures on the report in over a decade.
In December last year, during the debate in the Assembly, the government stated that as per the records, 1.12 lakh acres is Waqf land, but the Waqf Board is left with just 20,054 acres. Around 73,000 acres are with farmers through the Inam Abolition and Land Reforms Act. Last year, notices were issued to several farmers concerning Waqf lands. After protests by farmers and Opposition parties, the government was forced to direct the officials to withdraw the notices. That episode had caused a major embarrassment to the state government, even prompting the JPC’s visit to some districts.
Waqf land has always been a prickly issue for the Siddaramaiah government. The Assembly had passed a resolution against the Waqf Bill during the recent session of the state legislature, terming it a violation of the fundamental principles of the Constitution.
One has to wait and see how the Congress government in the state responds to and implements the new Act after the Centre rolls out the reforms.