Senior BJP Lok Sabha member Jagdambika Pal will chair the joint parliamentary committee formed to review the contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill, officials announced on Tuesday.
Following protests by the opposition in the Lok Sabha over the bill's provisions, the government decided to refer the legislation to a joint committee of both Houses.
The committee will consist of 31 members — 21 from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha — and is expected to present its report by the next parliamentary session.
On Friday, both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha passed a motion proposed by Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, who also manages parliamentary affairs, to appoint members to the committee.
A formal notification confirming Pal as the committee's chair is anticipated shortly, according to officials.
In the Lok Sabha, the panel will include 12 members from the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), comprising eight BJP members and four from the opposition. In the Rajya Sabha, the committee will have four BJP members, four from the opposition, one from the YSR Congress Party (which has opposed the Bill), and one nominated member.
The Bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, was referred to the joint committee after a heated debate. The government has asserted that the proposed legislation does not seek to interfere with mosque operations, while the opposition has criticised it as targeting Muslims and undermining the Constitution.
Rijiju stated that the committee will submit its report to the Lok Sabha by the final day of the first week of the next session.
Follow us
