Waqf Bill: Opposition members meet LS Speaker, lodge protest

New Delhi: Opposition members in the parliamentary committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday to register their protest against alleged “unilateral” decisions by panel chairman and BJP MP Jagdambika Pal.

The members had claimed they were “stonewalled” during the committee’s proceedings and had also indicated that they may even dissociate from the panel, as they objected to the manner in which Pal was functioning including on fixing the dates of sittings, which were at times for three consecutive days.

According to a source, opposition leaders expressed confidence that Birla would step in to reduce the frequency of meetings to allow members to prepare for the sittings and study the presentations made.

One member said the panel may now have one or two meetings in a fortnight. After the meeting, the MPs told reporters that Speaker Birla heard them patiently and assured them of a decision at the earliest.

“It was a very nice discussion. He was very kind to us. The Speaker has very patiently heard us and said he will look into the matter,” TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee said. Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh and DMK MP A Raja spoke on similar lines. “It was a fruitful meeting, the Speaker assured us of looking into our grievances,” Raja said.

The MPs also submitted a memorandum to the Speaker detailing their concerns. According to sources, the MPs submitted a letter to the Speaker, signed by Opposition MPs including Congress’s Mohammad Jawed and Imran Masood, DMK’s Raja,

AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi, AAP’s Sanjay Singh and TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee. The MPs, in the memorandum, urged the Speaker to direct the Chairman of the JPC to have a formal consultation with members of the

Committee before taking decisions, according to sources. They had also said they may be forced to “disassociate with JPC once for all as we have

been stonewalled”. To a query on the issue on Tuesday, the MPs refused to divulge details.