– Alamgeer Hossain (President, Islamic Youth Federation)
Last year, the central government introduced the “Waqf Amendment Bill” in Parliament, which was then sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee. This committee submitted a report, and on April 2nd 2025, it was presented in the Lok Sabha (the lower house of Parliament). After a lengthy, dramatic debate filled with humor and satire, the “Waqf Amendment Bill” was passed in the Lok Sabha. On April 3rd, the bill was presented in the Rajya Sabha (the upper house), and it was passed there late at night. With the President’s approval, it became law.
Despite the presentation of numerous logical arguments against the bill in both houses of Parliament, its passage proves that in a democracy, facts and logic are often ineffective—what matters is the majority. That is the reality of democracy: if the majority claims two plus two equals five, it gets passed.
After the law was passed, aggressive Hindutva activists began to interfere with burial rituals in some graveyards. In Murshidabad, protests against the act saw the involvement of radical Hindutva elements and attempts to incite riots also came to light. In various districts of Uttar Pradesh, silent protests by wearing black armbands resulted in participants facing financial penalties and legal warrants worth lakhs of rupees.
This “Waqf Amendment Act” is a new addition to the ongoing oppression and persecution of Muslims. This law is nothing short of an attack on the faith of Muslims and Shariah (Islamic Law). It is part of a broader effort to erase the name and identity of Islam and Muslims from India. A key strategy in this process is gradually eliminating Islamic symbols—among which, the mosque holds significant importance. Previously, some mosques were demolished on the pretext of ancient temples being discovered underneath, and temples were built in their place. Now, many other mosques are being targeted similarly. In India, numerous Madrasas, Dargahs (shrines), Graveyards, and Eidgah exist, many of which are built on waqf property. If documentation for the waqf land upon which a mosque is built is missing or contains any errors, that land will be declared “disputed” by law, and anything established on disputed land will be subject to removal. Ultimately, such mosques will be demolished. Therefore, it is clear that this is a new tactic aimed at destroying mosques—symbols of Islam. But it’s not just mosques—Madrasas, Shrines, Graveyards, and Eidgah will also be erased, and complete government control will be established over waqf properties.
Recently, a fact finding team reported that Murshidabad riots that were incited during the protests against Waqf Amendment Act, were not spontaneous, it could have been stopped by the police and the BJP is using it for its political gain
Waqf property belongs solely to Allah, and its maintenance is the responsibility of Muslims alone. It is not state property, and non-Muslim communities have no right to manage or maintain mosques built on such land. Allah says in the Qur’an:
“The mosques of Allah are only to be maintained by those who believe in Allah and the Last Day and establish prayer and give Zakah and do not fear except Allah, for it is expected that those will be of the [rightly] guided.” (Surah At-Tawbah – 18)
In essence, the issue of waqf property is exclusively a concern for Muslims—not any other religion, community, or nation. Therefore, it is the duty of Muslims to defend it. Protecting waqf property and the Mosques and Madrasas built upon it is a matter of faith for Muslims. Those who sacrifice their lives while defending their property and religious sites attain the status of martyrs. The Messenger of Allah (PBUJ) said:
“Whoever is killed while protecting his wealth is a martyr; whoever is killed while defending his life is a martyr; whoever is killed while defending his religion is a martyr; and whoever is killed while protecting his family is a martyr.” (Abu Dawood & Tirmidhi)
This oppression of believers is not limited to India—it is happening worldwide. In China, Uyghur Muslims face brutal oppression by communists; in Myanmar, Rohingya Muslims are targeted by extremist Buddhists. But the atrocities committed by the barbaric state of Israel against Palestinian Muslims have surpassed them all. Israel, under the pretext of eliminating Hamas, has launched a mass genocide campaign against ordinary Palestinian men, women, children, and the elderly.
In the last month, breaking a ceasefire agreement, Israel bombed Gaza, killing over 400 Muslim women and children. Despite the ceasefire, Israel continued sporadic bombings, targeting innocent Muslims. Several factors have led to Israel’s unhinged aggression:
1. The Zionists’ deep-rooted hatred for Muslims.
2. Pressure from the families of hostages captured by Hamas on October 7.
3. Israel’s psychological defeat at the hands of Hamas. Since the October 7th incident, Israel’s primary objective was to eliminate Hamas. But even after 15 months of mass killing, it has failed. On the contrary, support for Hamas has increased, and Israel was forced to sign a ceasefire agreement. The harsh reality is that in a year and a half, nearly 50,000 Muslims have been killed.
Each day, situation in Gaza worsens as the people are now dying of hunger and diseases without any external aid whereas Israel continues its Genocide
These fascist, imperialist powers impose exploitative policies under the guise of governance. They want to dominate humanity and bind people in chains of servitude. But Islam seeks to break those chains and free humanity from human domination by instilling servitude to Allah alone. They view Islam as an obstacle to their desires and see the believers as hindrances in their path. This is why they unleash a steamroller of oppression on those who accept Allah as their Lord. Creating obstacles on the path of Islam and persecuting the believers is not a new phenomenon. Throughout history, those who have believed in Allah as their Lord have been subjected to relentless persecution and efforts to erase them from existence. What inspired them to remain steadfast in faith and sacrifice their lives for the path of Allah is their longing for Paradise and the desire to attain Allah’s pleasure. Allah promises the believers:
“Indeed, those who have said, ‘Our Lord is Allah’ and then remained steadfast – the angels will descend upon them, [saying], ‘Do not fear and do not grieve but receive good tidings of Paradise, which you were promised.'” (Surah Fussilat – 30)
May Allah grant all of us the ability to fulfill the responsibilities He has assigned to us, and grant us steadfastness in faith and religion during the most difficult times. Ameen, Ya Rabb al-Alameen.
