NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court is set to hear on Monday a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, just weeks after the Centre paused key provisions of the contentious law following probing questions from the top court.
According to media reports, the three-judge bench led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and comprising Justices Sanjay Kumar and K V Viswanathan will examine five petitions, including one filed by AIMIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, under the case title In Re the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025. Over 70 litigants had moved the court, though only five have been selected for the initial hearing.
The hearing comes after the Centre assured the apex court on April 17 that it would refrain from denotifying waqf properties—including “waqf by user”—and from making appointments to the Central Waqf Council or state boards until 5 May. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, argued against any interim stay, saying the law was passed by Parliament following “due deliberations” and enjoys a presumption of constitutionality.
The court had noted the assurance and directed that no waqf properties, including those identified by long-standing usage, be disturbed until the next hearing. It also granted the Union government a week to file its preliminary response.
In its 1,332-page affidavit submitted on April 25, the Ministry of Minority Affairs opposed any blanket stay, contending that such interference would result in “a legislative regime by a judicial order”. The government argued that the Act does not interfere with essential religious practices and leaves faith and worship untouched.
The affidavit justified the contentious “waqf by user” clause, explaining that the practice refers to recognising properties as waqf based on prolonged and uninterrupted religious or charitable use, even without formal written declarations.
Citing data, the Centre said there was a 116 per cent surge in waqf-claimed land following the 2013 amendment, describing the trend as “really shocking”. It claimed the total waqf land in India before 2013 stood at approximately 18.29 lakh acres, which increased to over 20.92 lakh acres after the amendment. These figures, it said, were uploaded voluntarily by waqf boards on the Waqf Management System of India portal.
The government alleged that despite a mandatory registration regime in place since 1923, private and public lands continued to be wrongly claimed as waqf, causing deprivation of property rights.
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) has countered the Centre’s affidavit, accusing it of submitting false data and demanding action against the responsible officer. The Board also raised objections to the claim of a “shocking increase” in waqf listings post-2013.
Earlier, the court declined to accept any fresh petitions, stating that it would only hear the five selected cases. The Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, was notified after receiving President Droupadi Murmu’s assent on 5 April. It was passed in the Lok Sabha with 288 votes in favour and 232 against, and in the Rajya Sabha with 128 in favour and 95 opposed.
Multiple political parties, including the DMK, YSRCP, AIMIM, Left parties, and civil society groups, have moved the court challenging the law’s validity.
