In response to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024, the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind (JUH) on Sunday, March 23, announced it would boycott iftar, Eid Milan, and other events hosted by Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu, and Union minister for food processing industries Chirag Paswan.
Nitish Kumar, Chandrababu Naidu and Chirag Paswan parties are alliance partners of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre. The Union government has been strongly advocating the amendment of the Bill which, if passed into law, could allow encroachment or seizure of Muslim properties under the Waqf Board.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill is expected to be tabled in the ongoing Budget Session after the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) led by BJP MP Jagdambika Pal gave a green signal, which again has drawn widespread criticism from Muslim organisations.
“As a symbolic protest, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind will not attend Iftar, Eid Milan, and other events of leaders like Nitish Kumar, Naidu, and Chirag Paswan, who call themselves secular. These people are silent on the injustice and atrocities being committed against Muslims for the sake of power and are supporting the government against the Constitution of the country,” Jamiat president Arshad Madani posted on X.
Along with Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) has also echoed the same sentiments and declared a detailed nationwide agitation to be organized in all state capitals.
With just days left for Eid-ul-Fitr, prominent Muslim organisations have rejected the Nitish Kumar government’s iftar invitation as a mark of protesting for supporting the Bill. “We, the undersigned Milli organisations of Bihar, collectively decline your invitation to the Government Iftar on 23rd March 2025 in protest against your continued support for the proposed Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024. This bill threatens the very existence of Waqf properties, violates constitutional protections, and deepens the economic and educational marginalisation of Muslims.”
Bihar’s other Muslim organisations such as the Imarat Shariah have planned a large-scale protest in Patna on March 26. The protest will unite Muslim groups affiliated with AIMPLB, along with like-minded MPs and various political and social organizations.
It should be noted that 2026 is a crucial year for incumbent CM Nitish Kumar as Bihar will hold Assembly elections. A decision as crucial as this could significantly impact the electoral prospects of Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) party and its Muslim leaders.
