The <keyword id="19916814" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Modi-government" source="keywords">Modi government</keyword> today tabled the <keyword id="20279538" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="waqf" source="keywords">Waqf</keyword> (Amendment Bill), 2024, in the parliament, proposing over 40 sweeping <keyword id="19960364" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="amendments" source="keywords">amendments</keyword> to the existing <keyword id="20776329" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Waqf-Act" source="keywords">Waqf Act</keyword>, which range from the DC (district collectors) being the mediator in determining whether or not a property belongs to the Waqf board, and increased representation for <keyword id="19943278" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Muslim-women" source="keywords">Muslim women</keyword> in Waqf boards, and more. <br /><br />Here's all you need to know about the Waqf Act 1995, which was last amended in 2013. The Waqf board came into existence post-independence, when the government gave it control of properties which were previously owned by Muslims in India, but were now vacant, since their owners had migrated to newly-created Pakistan.<br /><br /><h2>New bill to bring greater accountability <br /></h2>One of the central objectives of this amendment bill is to curtail the disproportionately arbitrary powers that the Waqf board currently wields. At present, India has 32 Waqf boards, including two for Shia Muslims in UP and Bihar. <br /><br />Under the current act, the Waqf board can claim any property as their own, without having to undertake any prior or compulsory verifications. In other words, if they believe that the land belongs to waqf, that itself is deemed sufficient for them to claim ownership. <br /><br />Interestingly, the person donating or holding such property need not be a practising Muslim, but can also be someone of sound body and mind, who believes in Islam. <br /><br />Moreover, in case the Waqf board takes over your property, the incidence of proving that it is indeed, your property lies with the land owner i.e. you, and not with the Waqf board.<br /><br /><h2>What is Waqf? </h2>Any immovable or movable property that has been dedicated or donated by an individual for the purposes that are seen as pious and religious in Islam is known as Waqf. Think of this as an endowment or trust made for religious purposes, or for causes noted sacrosanct in Muslim Law.<br /><br />Per WAMSI's website (Waqf Asset Management System of India), which is managed by ministry of minority affairs, around 8,72,324 immovable properties, and 16,713 movable properties have been classified as Waqf. With 2,17,161 immovable properties under its management, the U.P. Sunni Central Board of Waqfs hold the maximum number of properties amidst all state and UT waqf boards. <br /><br />Most waqf properties (around 1,50,516) have been designated to be used as graveyards, followed by agricultural land (1,40,784) and mosques (1,19,200). <br /><br />While Waqf refers to a single such property, Auqaf refers to the multiple such properties and assets, which have been deemed as Waqf. The one who donates towards such causes is known as a Waqif. Once a property has been deemed as Waqf, its status cannot be changed ever, since the property is deemed to be donated to Allah. <br /><br />This also means that Waqf properties cannot ever be sold, either by the property's custodian, also known as mutawwali, nor by the owner or the board themselves. <br /><br />At present, Waqf Boards are the third largest landowners in the country, right behind Indian Railways and the Army. Waqf boards across the country cumulatively hold and manage around 8.7 lakh properties, which span over 9.4 lakh acres. <br /><br /><h2>What are the changes proposed?</h2>Most significantly, the bill aims to omit section 40 of the act, which gives absolute power to the Waqf boards to decide whether a property belongs to the Waqf board or not. If the bill is passed, the district collector (DC) will serve as the judge in deciding whether a property can be registered as Waqf or not. The DC will also serve as focal point of dispute resolution for issues related to the Waqf Act. <br /><br />Presently, appeals against the Waqf board have to pass through a tribunal, which itself is made up of members of the Waqf board. The decision of this tribunal is final, and can only be challenged if the high courts themselves command the board to do as stated. Moreover, in some states, there exists no tribunals, making the Waqf board as the ultimate authority. Additionally, these tribunals do not have any specific timeline within which they should resolve the disputes, which means that the grievance redressal process could stretch for years. <br /><br />If the bill is passed, it will be up to the DC to check the validity and correctness of the application that has been submitted for any property that is to be registered as Waqf, and then submit a report to them. The idea behind the amendments is to streamline how Waqfs are registered, by means of a central database. Moreover, any appeals against the tribunal's order will be contestable in high courts, within 90 days of passing of such orders.<br /><br />The act will be renamed Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995, and will have scope for increased representation of various backward Muslim communities such as <keyword id="22713004" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shias" source="keywords">Shias</keyword>. It also proposes creation of an altogether separate "Auqaf" board for Bohras and Aghakhanis.<br /><br />The bill also proposes that no property would be deemed waqf solely by way of use. At present, even in the absence of waqfnama or valid documents, a property is considered to be waqf, provided it is being used for causes such as being a mosque etc. Under the new bill, any property that does not have a waqfnama will not be automatically considered a waqf property. <br /><br />Additionally, at present, when it comes to Waqf-alal-aulad, or private wakf, which is created solely for the benefit of a particular group of people and thereafter, its descendants, only the male heir, or eldest son can become the mutawwali after the death of the owner of the property. Women and female descendants are not accorded the same rights. The rules also state that once there are no direct descendants or heirs left to lay claim this private wakf, the monetary gains from the same will automatically be transferred to the Waqf board. <br /><br /> hat is created for the benefit of a specific group of people, such as a family or descendants. It is also known as wakf-ul-aaulad. The proceeds from a private waqf are used to serve the beneficiaries. <br /><em></em>

Waaqif with the Waqf Act? Here's all you need to know

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/53ff43156bb3f7cb756391ee-1200-600/islam-uk-london.jpg" border="0" alt="Islam UK London"><p class="source"><span>Reuters / David Bebber</span></p><p class="caption">A British police officer watches British Muslims undertaking Friday prayers outside the Finsbury Park Mosque, London, May 28, 2004. </p></img></div><p></p></div></div>The United Kingdom raised its terror threat level to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/uk-terror-threat-level-severe-2014-8">"severe"</a> on Friday in response to the rise militant Islamists in Iraq and Syria, some of whom came from Britain.</p>
<p>Around 500 British Muslims are estimated to have<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/isis-is-recruiting-westerners-countries-2014-8"> joined groups like ISIS</a>, along with more than a thousand volunteers from other Western countries. Notably, the murderer of American James Foley in video released by ISIS appeared to have a British accent.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5400ae0eeab8ea8c6666901f-537-343/screen shot 2014-08-29 at 12.43.57 pm.png" border="0" alt="ISIS London"><p class="source"><span>Twitter</span></p><p class="caption">This popular meme on twitter appears to show British Police overseeing a pro-ISIS rally in London.</p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p>In a statement delivered from Downing Street in London Friday afternoon, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron said Britain was facing a "greater and deeper threat to our security than we have known before."</p>
<p>He said confronting ISIS was part of a generational struggle that he thought could last decades.<span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> </span></p>
<p><span>"Poisonous ideology of Islamist extremism is the root cause of the terror threat," Cameron said. "We will always act with urgency when needed."</span></p>
<p class="p1"><strong>History Of Terror</strong></p>
<p>Radical Islamist leaders used to preach openly in the U.K, Innes Bowen, a BBC journalist and author of "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Medina-Birmingham-Najaf-Brent-British/dp/1849043019">Inside British Islam</a>," tells Business Insider.</p>
<p>In 2004 Bowen attended a gathering held by notorious radical preacher Omar Bakri Muhammad, who later left Britain and was charged with terrorism-related offenses in several countries. <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">She was struck by the pro-al Qaeda message that she heard in the wake of the September 11 attacks, and </span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">"almost as striking was how 'normal' the atmosphere was."</span></p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_left"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/53ff3be4ecad04ac5450b7a4-1200-924/charles-prince-camilla-mosque-islam-royal.jpg" border="0" alt="Charles Prince Camilla Mosque Islam Royal" style="font-size: 15.5555562973022px;"><p class="source"><span>Reuters / Shaun Curry</span></p><p class="caption">Britain's Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, visit the mainstream Dawoodi Bohra Mosque in Northolt, west of London February 4, 2009.</p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p>"I was in the women's gallery where everyone was very friendly towards me even though they knew I was a BBC journalist. Small children played while the husband of one of the women praised al Qaeda from the pulpit downstairs - but that was before the London bombings," she said.</p>
<p>Bowen tells us this radical assembly was far from being a typical Muslim crowd.</p>
<p>"They were all supporters of this extreme group - now banned - called al Muhajiroun," she said.<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"> </span></p>
<p>One member of the group told her, "We consider 9/11 as a self sacrifice operation whereby 19 Mujahideen, fighters of Islam, broke the nose of America."</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">But the era of open radicalism ended</span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> on July 7, 2005, when </span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">three British Islamists detonated suicide bombs on the London Underground, and a fourth blew himself up on a double-decker bus.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">The blasts killed 52 and injured up to 700.</span></p>
<p><span>Aged 18, 19, 22, and 30, three of the bombers were British-born Pakistanis, and another had immigrated from Jamaica.</span></p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/53ff387169bedd55586b082d-400-300/london-bombings-1.jpg" border="0" alt="London bombings"><p class="source"><span>AP Photo</span></p><p class="caption">The backpack bomb ripped this London bus apart, killing 13 of its passengers. </p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">After 2005, many radicals were either imprisoned or went abroad.</span><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"> </span></p>
<h3>Burning underground</h3>
<p class="p1">Government responses to the 2005 attacks appear to have pushed the current wave of Islamism underground, leading Islamist leaders to become more cautious. </p>
<p class="p1">The <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/25/world/europe/nation-appeals-to-anti-extremist-imams-in-effort-to-uproot-seeds-of-radicalization.html" target="_blank">New York Times reports</a> that a small minority of radical imams preach Islamic supremacy, taking aim at non-Muslims and gays and citing fundamentalist interpretations of the Quran to justify violent responses.</p>
<p class="p1">However, as the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/25/world/europe/nation-appeals-to-anti-extremist-imams-in-effort-to-uproot-seeds-of-radicalization.html">Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura writes in The Times</a>, "They are careful not to suggest taking up arms, but will talk about the situation in Syria, Iraq or Gaza, and then talk about a Muslim's duties. Their views are extreme, but rarely illegal."</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_left"><div><div class="image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5400b0f269beddf871a12330-1200-924/fox-3.png" border="0" alt="Fox" style="line-height: 1.5em;"><p class="source"><span>Fox</span></p><p class="caption">Two conservatives face off: Choudary promotes his recent Fox appearance on twitter. </p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p class="p1">One of the most prominent preachers is Anjem Choudary, whose followers were recently caught<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;"> </span><a href="http://www.channel4.com/news/radical-british-muslims-islamic-state-caliphate-iraq-syria">handing out pro-ISIS leaflets</a><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">.  </span></p>
<p class="p1"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">C</span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">houdary generates headlines with his colorful damnations of Western governments, and his </span><a href="https://twitter.com/anjemchoudary" target="_blank">twitter feed</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> boasting of appearances on NBC and Fox as well as European networks.</span></p>
<p class="p1"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><span>His proclamations mix concerns over torture, drone-warfare, and Muslim persecution with conservative Islamism and rhetoric of an epic clash of civilizations. </span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">But with no mosque that will have him</span>, Choudary holds lectures and town hall meetings, posting recordings on YouTube.</p>
<h3>Recruits for Syria and Iraq</h3>
<p>As a result of the conflict involving ISIS, the radical message has gone public again.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/53ff3c9deab8ea4106cb305a-840-630/isis-17.png" border="0" alt="ISIS"><p class="source"><span>ISIS</span></p><p class="caption">ISIS uses social media and targeted outreach in multiple languages to encourage Westerners to join its ranks.</p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p>"This time it is being spread by fighters abroad via social media rather than by preachers based in the U.K.," Bowen said.</p>
<p><span>ISIS has been targeting Western recruits with social-media campaigns, slickly produced videos, and English-language publications.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Bowen said some radicals may well versed in religious ideology and have a misplaced sense of duty, while others are motivated by a sense of adventure and could be "surprisingly ignorant."</span></p>
<p><a href="http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119182/jihadists-buy-islam-dummies-amazon">The New Republic</a> recently reported that two young men who joined the conflict from the U.K. this May purchased "Islam for Dummies" and "The Koran for Dummies" before leaving.</p>
<p>It's difficult to identify who is at risk at radicalization, though.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_left"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/53ff656969bedd4a636b082f-982-736/isis-militant-flag-4.png" border="0" alt="isis militant flag" style="color: #222222; line-height: 22.5px;"><p class="source"><span>Twitter</span></p><p class="caption">An ISIS militant carrying the organization's flag in a propaganda video. </p></img></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p>"If we look at the backgrounds of the British Muslims who have been involved in violent extremism, what's striking is the variety: graduates as well as the poorly educated; women as well as men; the privileged as well as the marginalized; converts as well as born Muslims; British born as well as immigrants," Bowen said.</p>
<p>"The only thing that those so far convicted of terrorist offenses in the U.K. have in common is a shared ideology and a willingness to act on it."</p>
<p> </p>

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Waaqif with the Waqf Act? Here's all you need to know

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