Supreme Court to hear interim plea on Waqf Amendment Act today
New Delhi: The Supreme Court will today hear arguments on interim relief in the case challenging key provisions of the Waqf law. A two-judge bench comprising Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih will preside over the matter.
The petitions challenge the law’s expanded provisions that enhance the government's role in the regulation and administration of Waqf properties. As per a previous decision by a three-judge bench led by then-CJI Sanjeev Khanna, only five leading petitions will be heard, selected from a large batch of pleas. Both sides will get two hours each for arguments.
The Centre has already paused the implementation of two controversial provisions. It has assured the Court that it will not denotify properties deemed waqf under the “waqf by user” doctrine, nor will it proceed with fresh appointments to the Central Waqf Council or the state waqf boards.
The Court is expected to focus on three main issues during the hearing:
1. Whether properties declared as waqf by courts or long-term usage (“waqf by user”) can be denotified.
2. The validity of including non-Muslim members in the Central and State Waqf Boards.
3. A provision allowing the district collector to exclude a property from waqf status if found to be government land.
Senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Rajiv Dhawan, Salman Khurshid, and Huzaifa Ahmadi will argue for the petitioners challenging the law, with Ejaz Maqbool as the nodal counsel.
On the opposing side, senior advocates Rakesh Dwivedi, Maninder Singh, Ranjit Kumar, Ravindra Srivastava, and Gopal Shankar Narayan are expected to represent the supporters of the law. Vishnu Shankar Jain will serve as their nodal counsel.
Today’s hearing may determine whether the Court will issue interim orders on these disputed provisions pending a final judgment.
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UP court rejects plea seeking Rahul Gandhi's voice sample in defamation case
Sultanpur (UP) (PTI): A local MP/MLA court on Saturday rejected a plea seeking a voice sample of Rae Bareli MP Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case filed by a BJP functionary against the Congress leader, and posted the matter for next hearing on May 11.
The plea, filed by BJP leader Vijay Mishra through his counsel Santosh Kumar Pandey, had sought Gandhi's voice sample for a forensic test to compare it with an audio clip.
After the petition was dismissed, Pandey said they would file a revision plea before the sessions court against the order.
The court rejected the plea after hearing the arguments of both sides, including Gandhi's counsel Kashi Prasad Shukla.
The matter dates back to 2018 when Mishra, a local BJP leader, filed a defamation suit over Gandhi’s alleged objectionable remarks targeting Amit Shah while campaigning for the Karnataka Assembly elections.
After five years of legal proceedings, the court issued a warrant against Gandhi in December 2023.
The Rae Bareli MP surrendered before the court in February 2024, and was granted bail on two sureties of Rs 25,000 each by a special magistrate.
On July 26 last year, the Congress leader recorded his statement before the court, claiming innocence and calling the case a political conspiracy.
Earlier this year, multiple hearings were postponed due to a strike by lawyers and the ill-health of Gandhi’s counsel.
