The Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2025 officially became a law on Saturday as it got the assent of President Draupadi Murmu.
Murmu also gave her assent to the Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2025.
“The following Act of Parliament received the assent of the president on April 5, 2025, and is hereby published for general information: The Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025,” the government said in a notification, PTI reported.
This came days after the contentious bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament after hours of debate. While the Lok Sabha cleared the bill early Thursday morning, the Rajya Sabha passed it on Friday after a similarly long and fiery discussion.
The bill is already facing challenges in the Supreme Court, with Congress MP Mohammad Jawed and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi contesting its constitutional validity in separate pleas.
Both Houses ran past midnight while engaging in discussion and debate over the Bill. Along with the Waqf Amendment Bill, the Rajya Sabha also passed the Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2024, after a 17-hour sitting, a day after it was cleared by the lower house.
PM Narendra Modi called the passing of the Waqf bill a ‘watershed moment’
Hours after Rajya Sabha passed the controversial Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 and Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it a “watershed moment”, saying the bills will help marginalised people who have been denied voice and opportunity.
He also expressed gratitude to the members of Parliament and the people who shared their inputs with the Joint Parliamentary Committee appointed to make recommendations on the bill.
“The passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill and the Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill by both Houses of Parliament marks a watershed moment in our collective quest for socio-economic justice, transparency, and inclusive growth. This will particularly help those who have long remained on the margins, thus being denied both voice and opportunity,” a part of Modi’s long post on X read.
The debate over the Bill saw a showdown, as expected, between the Centre and the Opposition in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju tabled the Bill in both Houses and said that it doesn’t violate or take away the rights of any community. The Opposition, however, insisted that the Bill was “unconstitutional” and “anti-Muslim”.