New Delhi: A large number of petitions filed against the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025 are slated to be heard by the Supreme Court on Wednesday.
Over a dozen petitions have been filed by various political leaders, parties and public figures, alleging that the new law enacted earlier this month is discriminatory towards the Muslim community and violates fundamental rights.
Chief Justice of India Justice Sanjiv Khanna has assured that the batch of petitions concerning the Waqf Amendment Act will be taken up for hearing on April 16, 2025.
Prominent among the petitioners are AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, actor-turned-politician and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam president Vijay, and the YSR Congress Party.
The petitioners have argued that the amendments severely dilute the autonomy of Waqf institutions and give the government excessive control over Muslim endowments.
Senior Advocate Sanjay Hegde also confirmed before the bench that his writ petition challenging the constitutionality of the Waqf Act has been filed and numbered.
The petitions, collectively, seek to strike down various provisions of the 2025 amendment on grounds of infringing upon Articles 14, 25, and 26 of the Constitution.
In response to these challenges, several parties and states have stepped in to defend the legislation.
The states of Rajasthan, Assam, and Maharashtra have filed intervention applications supporting the Waqf Amendment Act, asserting its necessity for administrative transparency and regulation.
Advocate Mahendra Pratap Singh, the main petitioner in the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi case and president of the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Mukti Nyas, has also voiced strong support for the amended law.
Similarly, Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, another key figure in the Krishna Janmabhoomi litigation, mentioned before the Chief Justice of India that a fresh writ petition challenging the Act is being filed.
