Waqf Amendment Act Supreme Court LIVE : SC Temporarily Suspends Key Provisions Of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025

Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi told ANI, "This is a really good decision. The Supreme Court has reined in the conspiracy and intentions of the Government."

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The Supreme Court of India on Monday temporarily suspended several key provisions of the 2024 Waqf Amendment Act but refused to stay the entire statute, saying such an action should only be taken in the “rarest of the rare” circumstances.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih passed an interim order of projection staying provisions which the bench said could result in an “arbitrary” exercise of power.

The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has welcomed the Supreme Court’s interim stay on certain provisions of the Waqf Amendment Act. Party leader and MP E.T. Muhammad Basheer said the apex court’s intervention was significant, as the contested provisions were aimed directly at the Muslim community.

“The decision to cap the number of non-Muslim members in the Waqf Board at three, and the rule requiring a person to have been a Muslim for at least five years for creating a Waqf, are particularly important provisions that have now been stayed. We will wait for the final judgment,” Basheer added.

The IUML is among the petitioners who had approached the Supreme Court challenging the amendment.

Maulana Khalid Rasheed Farangi Mahali told ANI that "Our demand was that there must be a stay on the entire Act, but the Court has not given such an order."

"However, the Court has stayed many provisions, and we welcome the stay on certain provisions, such as a person who wants to make a Waqf should be a practising Muslim for at least 5 years," he added.

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Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas, Member of All India Muslim Personal Law Board, tells ANI, "To a large extent, our point has been accepted."

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The court did not intervene in the waqf-by-user provision and stated that it is not a new requirement, as this condition was there in the previous enactments of 1995 and 2013 as well.

The bench said that “We have considered the prima facie challenge to the sections — the case was not made to stay entire provisions of the Act."

The SC stayed the provision allowing a government-designated officer to decide whether a waqf property had encroached on government land.

The court holds that an Executive, through the office of the District Collector, cannot be given sweeping authority which would affect the rights of citizens.

The Supreme Court said that “as far as possible the Chief Executive Officer of the Waqf Board should be a Muslim,“ but has not stayed the amendment provision allowing the appointment of a non-Muslim as a CEO.

The court emphasized that waqf bodies must consist predominantly of Muslim members. Waqf Boards and the Waqf Council are allowed to include up to three or four non-Muslim members. Additionally, the Chief Executive Officer should preferably be a Muslim, the court stated.

The requirement that a person has to be a practicing Muslim for five years before they can dedicate a property as waqf (Section 3(r)) has been stayed until State rules are framed for examining whether person is a practicing Muslim or not. The court said that with no concrete test for the same this would lead to arbitrariness.