Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, on April 3, 2025, congratulated the Union Government for protecting tribal land in the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, which was passed in the Lok Sabha on April 2 and in Rajya Sabha on April 3.
Home Minister Amit Shah, while addressing on the bill in Lok Sabha, stated that, as per Schedules 5 and 6, tribal lands will be protected.
Notably, under the Waqf bill, land belonging to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the concerned departments will be secured along with the private property of ordinary citizens.
Amit Shah also clarified that only one’s own property can be donated, which means Waqf cannot acquire private property without ownership.
“This Bill will provide protection to the lands… No one’s land will become Waqf by a mere declaration… We will give protection to ASI land, land of tribals under Schedule 5 and Schedule 6 will be secured… private property of common citizens will also be protected,you will need ownership to donate to Waqf, you can only donate your property, not the property of the village,” Shah said, Thanking the Government for safeguarding the tribal land, Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram said that it had presented its views before the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) and pressed the demand that the land of the tribal communities must be protected.
“This is the result of the continuous efforts of Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram for the last 15 days. Earlier, Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram had submitted memorandums to JPC across the country, due to which JPC recommended in its report that provisions for protection of tribal land should be made in the Waqf Bill”, reads a press note by Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram.
“A large amount of Waqf land and properties have been registered in the tribal areas of the fifth and sixth schedules of the Constitution which is the violation of the Constitution and the law. Only after knowing this fact, the JPC had recommended to the Government in its report that provisions for the protection of tribal lands should be made in the Waqf Bill,” Satyendra Singh, national president of Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram said.
Earlier on April 3, BJP leader Amit Malviya on the social media platform ‘X’ explained two new insertions, 3D and 3E, in the Waqf Bill, which would protect historical monuments and tribal lands against arbitrary Waqf encroachments.
“Any declaration or notification issued under this Act or under any previous Act m respect of waqf properties shall be void, if such property was a protected monument or protected area under the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act, 1904 or the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, at the time of such declaration or notification,” point 3D states.
Highlighting the implications of this insertion, Amit Malviya said that with the insertion of point 3D, monuments protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) would be excluded from the Waqf’s ambit.
“ASI-protected monuments have now been excluded from Waqf’s ambit. This decision was made because ASI is merely a custodian, and protected properties may not necessarily be government assets.
Similarly, insertion 3E states that land belonging to Scheduled Tribes could not be declared Waqf property.
“Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or any other law for the time being in force, no land belonging to members of Scheduled Tribes under the provisions of the Fifth Schedule or the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution shall be declared or deemed to be waqf property,” point 3E reads.
Explaining its implications, Amit Malviya said, “Excluding Tribal land from Waqf’s purview will safeguard the interests of Tribal communities and curb land encroachment, which has been a significant issue in Jharkhand and other Tribal-dominated areas. This is a major step in protecting Tribal rights, benefiting Bengal’s Tribals and many others.”
Notably, the Waqf Amendment Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha with 288-232 votes and 128-95 votes in Rajya Sabha.
