Waqf Bill: Did Rajya Sabha Pass the Waqf Amendment Bill? Fact Check

This story was originally published by The Quint, and republished by The Probe as part of the Shakti Collective. 

Waqf Bill: What Was the Outcome in Rajya Sabha?

Amid the ongoing discussions for the Waqf (Amendment) Bill in the Parliament, a claim is circulating on social media that the Waqf Bill has been 'passed' in the Rajya Sabha.

(Archives of similar claims can be found here and here.)

Is the Claim True?

 No, the claim is false.

• The Waqf Bill is yet to be passed in Rajya Sabha.

• It was tabled and accepted in the Rajya Sabha. Opposition members staged protests during its discussions, leading to the house being adjourned.

What We Found

We ran a relevant keyword search and came across news reports which did not mention anything about the Waqf Bill being 'passed' in the upper house of the Parliament.

• As per reports by India Today and Business Standard from 13 February, the Waqf Bill was tabled and accepted by the members of the Rajya Sabha.

• The reports noted that the house was adjourned following the opposition's protests during the bill's discussions.

• Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge demanded the report be sent back to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for reconsideration, stating that excluding dissenting views undermined democratic principles.

• In response, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju asserted that the dissent notes were included in the report's appendix and accused the opposition of misleading the House.

• We found no reports which state that the Waqf Bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha.

• Similar pattern prevailed in the Lok Sabha with the house being adjourned following protests by opposition members.

• At present the houses were adjourned on 13 February and will reconvene on 10 March, as per the Sansad website.

What is the Amendment?

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill proposes key changes to the existing Waqf Board, such as including at least two non-Muslim members on state Waqf boards and assigning a government official to determine the status of Waqf properties. The parliamentary committee submitted its final report on 30 January.

Conclusion 

Social media users have falsely claimed that the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha.

This Fact Check story was originally published by The Quint, as part of the Shakti Collective. Except for the headline/excerpt/opening introduction para this story has not been edited by The Probe staff.