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Informist, Monday, Sept. 15, 2025

 

NEW DELHI – The Supreme Court Monday stayed some key provisions of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, regarding creation of a waqf and decision by a district collector on waqf property's encroachment. A bench, led by Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai, however, refused to stay the entire provisions of the 2025 Act. "We have considered a prima facie challenge to each of the sections. We have found that no case was made out to stay entire provisions of statute. However some sections need some protection," said the bench, also comprising Justice Augustine George Masih. 

 

The top court stayed the provision in the 2025 Act that a person should be a practitioner of Islam for five years to create a Waqf. This provision was stayed till the state governments frame rules for examining whether a person is a practising Muslim or not, said the apex court.

 

The court also stayed the provision in the 2025 Act that allowed a collector to decide the dispute whether a Waqf property has encroached upon a government property. The collector cannot be permitted to adjudicate the rights of personal citizens and this will violate the separation of powers, said the top court. However, till adjudication happens by the waqf tribunal, no third party rights can be created against any parties, the court added.

 

Regarding the inclusion of non-Muslims in waqf bodies, the top court said not more than three non-Muslim members should be included in the waqf board and in total not over four non-Muslims shall be included in the waqf councils for now. Further, the apex court said the requirement for registration of waqf properties remains, considering that this aspect was there in the earlier laws as well. 

 

The Supreme Court was hearing a series of petitions filed by several opposition leaders and political parties challenging the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, which revises the legal framework governing the administration of waqf properties across the country. The petitioners argued that the amended law discriminates against the Muslim community and infringes upon the fundamental rights of its members. The petitioners have contested the move to mandate the inclusion of non-Muslim members in the Central Waqf Council, state waqf boards, and waqf tribunals, and said this amounts to unwarranted interference in the religious affairs of the Muslim community, an approach not applied to Hindu religious endowments, which continue to be managed exclusively by Hindus under various state laws.

 

The 2025 amendment to the Waqf Act, 1995, introduced significant changes in the administration and management of waqf properties. It shrank the powers of the waqf boards and vested the central government with authority to frame rules for asset management and administration. One major change was the removal of Section 40, which previously allowed a waqf board to determine whether a property qualified as waqf. It also streamlined the registration of waqfs through a central portal and database. The new law allows the appointment of non-Muslims in the Central Waqf Council, state waqf boards, and waqf tribunals. It has also added a provision to allow waqf tribunals to grant an extension of up to six months for registering properties on the central platform.  End

 

Reported by Surya Tripathi

Edited by Subhojit Sarkar

 

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