Islam

Lok Sabha extends tenure of joint parliamentary panel on Waqf bill

The Lok Sabha on Thursday adopted a resolution to extend the tenure of the Joint Committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill till the last day of the Budget session of Parliament next year. Committee Chairman and BJP leader Jagdambika Pal moved the resolution in the Lok Sabha, which approved it with a voice vote. The parliamentary panel's meetings have become a virtual battleground between the opposition and the ruling party members, who have been vociferously debating the changes to the Waqf Bill proposed by the government. On Wednesday, the opposition members of the committee staged a walkout and slammed Pal for asserting that the panel's draft report was ready. Pal and the BJP members of the committee then reached out to opposition members and indicated their willingness to press for an extension of the committee's deadline of November 29 to submit its report to the Lok Sabha. The Lok Sabha had constituted the committee on August 8 and asked to submit its report on the last day of t

Where are we taking the country: Sibal after 'Shiva temple in dargah claim'

A day after a court in Ajmer issued notices in a civil suit claiming that there is a Shiva temple in the dargah of Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Thursday termed the development as "worrisome" and wondered where the country was being taken for political dividends. A local court in Ajmer on Wednesday directed that notice be issued to three parties in a civil suit which claims there is a Shiva temple in the dargah, the plaintiff's advocate said. In a post on X, Sibal said, "Worrisome. The latest claim: Shiv Temple at Ajmer Dargah. Where are we taking this country? And why? For political dividends!" Advocate Yogesh Siroja told reporters in Ajmer that the suit was heard in the court of Civil Judge Manmohan Chandel. The suit, claiming there is a Shiva temple in the dargah, was filed in September seeking directions to start the worship in the temple again. He said notices have been issued to Ajmer Dargah Committee, Ministry of Minority Affairs and Archaeolog

Waqf row: K'taka govt warns officials issuing eviction notice to farmers

The Karnataka government has warned that disciplinary action will be taken against those officials who change the land mutation records and serve eviction notices to farmers under the Waqf Act. In a letter, the Revenue Department Principal Secretary Rajender Kumar Kataria reminded all regional commissioners and deputy commissioners in the districts that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah recently had a meeting following complaints about certain land properties being made in favour of the Karnataka Board of Waqfs. In the meeting it was decided that all the directions issued previously by any government office or authority to change the mutation records has been withdrawn, the letter said. It added that all the notices served in the past have also been withdrawn and no action should be taken against the farmers who are cultivating on the said land. On the directions of the chief minister, the previous letters and the latest reminders served on November 7 to the farmers and land owners have

Never asked to close madrassas, Muslim children should get education: NCPCR

NCPCR chairperson Priyank Kanoongo said he never called for the closure of madrassas but recommended state funding to these institutions be stopped as they are depriving poor Muslim children of education. He said that Muslim children from improverished backgrounds are often pressured into religious schooling over secular education. We advocate for equitable educational opportunities for all children. In a recent report, the apex child rights body, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) raised serious concerns about the state of functioning in madrassas and called for stopping the state funding unless they comply with the Right to Education Act. Responding to the functioning of the madrassas, Kanoongo criticised certain groups within the country for "fearing" the empowerment of the poor Muslim community. "There exists a faction in our nation that dreads the empowerment of Muslims. Their fear stems from the anticipation that empowered communities will demand .

Parliament panel on Waqf Bill receives over 120 million responses

A parliamentary panel examining the Waqf (Amendment) Bill has received a staggering 1.2 crore email responses amid campaigns launched by rival groups to ratchet up support for their respective viewpoints regarding the draft law. Parliamentary sources said the Joint Committee on the Waqf Amendment Bill, chaired by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Jagadambika Pal, has also received 75,000 responses with documents to support the respective views, prompting the panel to seek additional staff from the Lok Sabha Secretariat. "We have deployed 15 additional personnel to go through the email responses and categorise and document those," one of the sources said. Radical Islamic preacher Zakir Naik has appealed to his supporters to oppose the Waqf (Amendment) Bill by sending responses to the parliamentary panel examining the draft law. The appeal from Naik has triggered a counter-reaction and several Hindu groups too have urged their supporters to write emails to the committee in support

Waqf Ammendment Bill 2024 to be passed in Parliament in coming days: Shah

During the meeting on September 18, representatives from the Ministry of Minority Affairs will record oral evidence before the committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024

Why has a Dutch court convicted and sentenced two Pakistanis in absentia?

The convicted individuals are believed to be residing in Pakistan, which does not have an extradition agreement with the Netherlands

BJP's minority wing to seek Muslims' views on Waqf bill, notify parl panel

Amid strident criticism of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill by some major Muslim bodies, the BJP's 'Minority Morcha' will rally counterviews in support of reforms in Waqf boards and seek suggestions on the law to present it to the parliamentary committee examining the Bill. Sources said a team of seven BJP members, including state Waqf Board chairpersons, will elicit views of the minority community across the country and assuage their concerns on a host of issues. "We will convey to the committee every point of view. If there is any concern on any aspect of the Bill, we will express it as well. But the need for reforms in Waqf boards is felt by the community everywhere," a BJP leader claimed. They Minority Morcha will share the report with the BJP leadership and the parliamentary panel headed by veteran party MP Jagdambika Pal. The committee members include Shadab Shams, Sanwar Patel and Mohsin Lokhandwala, who head the boards in Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, and Haryana Waqf .

300 booked for raising 'objectionable' slogans during protest in Pune

Police have registered a case against nearly 300 people after alleged objectionable slogans were raised during a protest outside the Pune District Collectorate, an official said on Sunday. A Sarvdharm Sambhav Mahamorcha' was organised on Friday to protest against the recent purported remarks by religious leader Ramgiri Maharaj against Islam. During the protest, the alleged slogans were raised, the official said. According to the police, the morcha was organised without permission and the slogans created communal tension and enmity between communities. An offence has been registered at the Bundgarden police station against 200-300 people who had participated in the morcha, said a senior police official. The case has been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for unlawful assembly, promoting enmity on grounds of religion, race and language and doing acts prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony and under the Maharashtra Police Act. Ramgiri Maharaj had allegedly made ..

Muharram 2024: When is Ashura? Know its History, Significance and more

Ashura, the 10th day of Muharram, is observed every year to commemorate the martyrdom of Prophet Muhammad's grandson, Hazrat Imam Hussain

90 Indians among over 1,000 Hajj pilgrims dead in Mecca amid intense heat

Deaths among Egyptians had surged to at least 658, a significant increase from the previous day's 300, largely due to the oppressive heat

Strict action against perpetrators of violence: MEA on Guj Univ incident

India on Sunday said that the Gujarat government is taking strict action against the perpetrators of violence at a university in Ahmedabad in which two foreign students sustained injuries. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said one of the two foreign students injured in the violence has been discharged from hospital. "An incidence of violence took place at Gujarat University in Ahmedabad yesterday. State government is taking strict action against the perpetrators," he said on 'X'. "Two foreign students were injured in the clash. One of them has been discharged from hospital after receiving medical attention," he said. According to Ahmedabad Police Commissioner GS Malik, the incident occurred on Saturday night when some 20-25 people entered a hostel premises of Gujarat University in Ahmedabad "and objected to the international students offering namaz there, asking them to do so in a mosque. They argued over the issue, assaulted them and hurled stones". Two stud

Five tips and tricks of self care during holy month of Ramadan 2024

Ramadan is the holiest month in Islam, includes fasting from sunrise to sunset and is a period for reflection and Muslim community. It is a time of purification and spiritual rejuvenation

Ukraine war: Up close and personal

But like the title of his new book, Our Enemies Will Vanish, Trofimov's depiction of an idyllic Kyiv only emphasises the brutal realities of the ensuing war

Two sides of political Islam

Depending on one's viewpoint, global political Islam is either at its strongest or weakest. But the real unwinnable wars are between Islamic states

India home to 2nd largest population of Muslims in world: President Murmu

India, as a multi-cultural and multi-religious society, celebrates unity in diversity and its over 200 million Muslims make the country the second largest population of the community in the world, President Droupadi Murmu said on Wednesday. Welcoming Muslim World League Secretary General Mohammad bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, who had called on the president at Rashtrapati Bhavan here, Murmu said India appreciates the role and objectives of the Muslim World League in promoting tolerant values, moderation of consciousness and inter-faith dialogue. She stated that India, as a multi-cultural, multi-lingual, multi-ethnic and multi-religious society, celebrates unity in diversity, a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan said. "Our more than 200 million Indian Muslim brothers and sisters make us the country with the second largest population of Muslims in the world," the president said. Murmu said India attaches great importance to its relationship with Saudi Arabia. She said both the ...

Islam & the spirit of non-violence

Abad Ahmad's book is a timely reminder of the true essence of Islam as contained in its Quranic verses, but does little to address the criticisms directed at the faith and its followers

Opposed to UCC as it's against religious freedom: Jamiat to Law Commission

Prominent Muslim body Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind has conveyed to the Law Commission that it is opposed to a uniform civil code as it is "against the religious freedom" guaranteed under the Constitution, and said the government should take leaders of all religions and tribal groups into confidence on the matter. In a statement on Thursday, the Jamiat shared a summary of the objections that were sent by it to the 22nd Law Commission on Wednesday in which the Muslim organisation said that it considers starting of the debate on UCC a part of a "political conspiracy". In a letter to the Law Commission, Jamiat president Maulana Arshad Madani said that this issue is not just related to Muslims but to all Indians. "It has been our position since the beginning that we have been practising our religion freely in this country...we will not compromise on our religious affairs and method of worship in any way, and we will take all possible measures to protect our religious rights within the scope of th

Mere oppn to Sharia cannot be basis for Uniform Civil Code: Shiv Sena (UBT)

The Shiv Sena (UBT) on Thursday said that mere opposition to Sharia' cannot be the basis for the Uniform Civil Code, asserting that UCC also means having equality in law and justice for all. Sharia is an Islamic religious law based on the teachings of the Quran and the traditional sayings of Muhammad. In an editorial in its mouthpiece Saamana', the Uddhav Thackeray-led party said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should first respect uniform law by disqualifying 40 MLAs including Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, whose Urban Development department has taken action against 18 ex-corporators from the Bhiwandi Nizampur City Municipal Corporation (BNCMC). Earlier this week, 18 former Congress corporators of BNCMC were disqualified from contesting any elections for the next six years for voting against their party's official mayoral candidate in 2019 and defying party whip. Only opposing the Sharia law of Muslims is not the basis for Uniform Civil Code. Having equality in law and ...

President Droupadi Murmu extends greetings to citizens on eve of Id-uz-Zuha

The President said, Id-uz-Zuha is the holy festival of love and sacrifice