We are forced to separate from Waqf JPC… Opposition MPs wrote a letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker expressing their pain.

New Delhi: Opposition parties have written a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, expressing concern over the unilateral decisions of the Chairman of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) investigating the Waqf (Amendment) Bill. Opposition MPs have warned that they may be forced to walk away from the JPC. The Lok Sabha has entrusted the responsibility of examining the Waqf Bill introduced by the government in the monsoon session to the JPC headed by Jagdambika Pal. This bill has been strongly opposed by opposition parties and many Muslim organizations. Recently, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said that the Waqf Bill will be passed in the upcoming winter session of Parliament.

Opposition MPs can meet Birla

The opposition members also claimed in a letter addressed to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla that they were unheard in the proceedings of the committee and in such a situation they may be forced to recuse themselves from the committee. Sources associated with the opposition said that they can meet Birla on Tuesday and apprise him/her about the complaints. Opposition members including DMK MP A Raja, Congress’s Mohammad Javed and Imran Masood, AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi, Aam Aadmi Party’s Sanjay Singh and Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee have written this joint letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker.

What allegations were made against Jagdambika Pal?

he/she accused veteran BJP MP Jagdambika Pal of taking ‘unilateral decisions’ in fixing the dates of the meetings and sometimes holding the meetings for three consecutive days and deciding who should be called before the committee. he/she said that it is not practically possible for MPs to hold talks without preparation.

What does Pal have to say?

Opposition members said the committee should not be seen as a means to get the proposed law passed as per the government’s wishes, bypassing due process. The committee’s proceedings have been disrupted due to continued protests by opposition members on several issues, with BJP members accusing them of deliberately trying to disrupt its work. Pal has rejected the charge that he/she did not allow opposition members to express their views. he/she said that he/she made sure that everyone’s point of view was heard.