Mamata says no one can forcibly acquire waqf properties, BJP hits back

Kolkata, Dec 12 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said waqf properties would be protected strictly under existing rules and no one can forcibly acquire them.

Addressing a public meeting in Krishnanagar in Nadia, Banerjee said her government has undertaken several welfare measures for the minorities, including the creation of 10,000 burial grounds and extending OBC reservation benefits.

"We have clearly stated that waqf property will follow the rules. The mutawallis (trustees of a mosque) will do it now. We will not allow anyone to acquire waqf properties," she said.

Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari alleged that the CM has abandoned the Muslim community, despite securing overwhelming support from them in elections.

"Someone who got 92 per cent of Muslim votes in 2021 and 91 per cent in 2024 has now pushed the community into a ditch over the waqf issue," he claimed.

Adhikari claimed TMC leaders have encroached acres of Waqf land, which is why the government was stalling the process of uploading property data on the Centre's UMEED portal.

He said while other states have uploaded waqf property details promptly, the West Bengal government's "indifference" had left nearly 80,000 properties pending.

"Three letters were sent by the Union Minority Affairs Ministry -- on October 27, November 18 and December 4. Only after that did the chief minister's secretary PB Salim wake up and direct district magistrates to act," he told reporters.

Suspended TMC MLA Humayun Kabir said the chief minister's statement exposed "TMC's double standards".

"Earlier, she said she wouldn't implement the Waqf Amendment Act, but then her government accepted it. And now she is again making misleading statements to fool the masses. TMC has been using the community only for votes," Kabir, who has recently laid the foundation of a Babri-style mosque in Murshidabad, said. PTI PNT SOM