Waqf Bill report sparks uproar, Opposition walks out of Rajya Sabha

The Budget Session of Parliament on Feb 13 witnessed high drama as the Opposition staged a walkout in the Rajya Sabha over the Waqf (Amendment) Bill report, which was tabled by the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).

The report, presented by BJP member Medha Vishram Kulkarni, a member of the committee, immediately triggered uproar among opposition MPs.

Alleging that their dissenting notes were deliberately deleted from the report, opposition members led by Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in Rajya Sabha and Congress MP Mallikarjun Kharge threatened a walkout.

Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju denied the claims and labeled the allegations as "false."

Amid escalating tensions, Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar tried to maintain order and began reading a message from President Droupadi Murmu. But, the members ignored Dhankar’s message and refused to take their seats, prompting Dhankhar to reprimand them.

"Don't show disrespect to the President of India," he said, urging Kharge to call on the opposition members to maintain order. With no resolution in sight, the Rajya Sabha was adjourned.

After more than an hour, Chairman Dhankhar read out the President’s message but the opposition members continued their protest, with some of them even trooping into the well of the House.

Leader of the House, JP Nadda, regretted that the Rajya Sabha was not in order when the President’s message was read. Dhankhar also accused MPs Samirul Islam, Nadimul Haque, and M Mohamed Abdulla of creating chaos and disruption during the session.

Later Kharge in his speech renewed his criticism of the report, maintaining that the dissenting notes from opposition members had been intentionally removed.

"The report of the joint committee on Waqf… in which several members had given their dissent notes, has been taken out. Bulldozing the report by only keeping the views of the majority members is not right. It is condemnable, anti-democratic," Kharge stated, calling the report "fake" and demanding that it be withdrawn and sent back to the committee for further review.

He stressed that the opposition MPs were not protesting for personal gain, but for the community that he claimed was being subjected to injustice.

"This is not about any individual... These MPs are not protesting for their own sake, they are protesting for the community against which injustice is being done," he said.

DMK's Tiruchi Siva and AAP's Sanjay Singh, also voiced concerns over the alleged removal of dissent notes from the report.

However, Rijiju denied all allegations, and asserted that no part of the report had been deleted.

"There is no deletion or removal of any part of the report. Don't mislead the House. Opposition members are making unnecessary issues. The allegation is false," he asserted.

Union Ministers Bhupender Yadav and Nirmala Sitharaman also joined Rijiju and accused the opposition of misleading the House.

Claiming that his own dissent note had been redacted, Congress' Syed Nasir Hussain accused Rijiju of misleading the House. TMC's Saket Gokhale said that it is not just religious but "a Constitutional issue" that requires serious attention.

Despite the uproar, Rijiju reiterated that the report contained all annexures and that no part had been removed.

Amid ongoing chaos, opposition members staged a walkout, and the House proceeded to the Question Hour.

The session saw rising tensions between the treasury and opposition benches, with accusations of unfair practices and undemocratic conduct on both sides.