TIRUCHY: The passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, through Parliament has brought a sense of relief to residents of Thiruchendurai in the district, where a land ownership dispute with the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board had raised fears over property rights. Many of the residents closely following the Waqf-related developments see the amendment, particularly the removal of Section 40, as a safeguard against unilateral land claims.
Previously, Section 40 of the Waqf Act empowered the Waqf Board to initiate suo motu inquiries to determine whether a property should be classified as Waqf, sparking concerns among residents.
Pointing to his house, V Kannan, a local resident, said, "My grandfather bought it several generations ago. We have every document to prove that we are the rightful owners. With this amendment, no one can suddenly declare our land as Waqf. We welcome this change."
TK Bala Subramanian, a retired teacher, added, "We have lived here for six generations. There is no mosque or Muslim population in this village. Our temple is over a thousand years old. This bill gives us legal strength to challenge such claims and after the President's consent, this act would curtail the powers of the Waqf Board."
Another resident, A Srinivasan, said, "All our land documents, including patta and chitta, were issued by the government. The amendment finally protects us from having to prove what we already own."
Their fears arose after a local landowner was denied deed registration in 2022 unless he obtained a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Waqf Board. It was then discovered that over 480 acres in the village, including the ancient Chandrasekha Swamy Temple had been listed under Waqf records, said Abdul Rahman, former head of the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board.
Senior BJP leader H Raja, who visited the temple on Friday, claimed that even Muslims in Tiruchy affected by any Waqf claims can seek a relief with the passage of the Bill.
"This temple was built by Aditya Chola even before Muslims arrived in India. Calling it Waqf land is historically and legally wrong. We will go village to village where people face this similar kind of issue and will urge people to vote against anti-Hindu forces misusing these laws trying to grab land owned by Hindus," Raja asserted.
In response, P Abdul Samad, MLA and member of the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board, said the issue had already been clarified by the district administration.
"This is a resolved matter. People like H Raja are stirring up tensions for political mileage. Tamil Nadu will not fall for such communal tactics," he said, noting that the State Assembly had adopted a resolution opposing the Waqf (Amendment) Bill. After tensions arose in the village, District Collector M Pradeep Kumar had clarified in 2022 that land registrations in Thiruchendurai could proceed without an NOC from the Waqf Board and accordingly land sales were carried out in Thiruchendurai. When enquired, a senior district revenue official said, "There is no requirement for an NOC to register property here and the procedure even continues now."