On the second day of the Supreme Court's hearing on the Waqf law, the Centre asserted that Waqf is a form of charity and not an essential religious practice in Islam. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, presenting arguments on behalf of the government, said the state is legally empowered to reclaim government land that has been declared as Waqf under the now-removed ‘waqf-by-user’ provision.