New Delhi, Apr 17 (UNI) In a significant development during the ongoing constitutional challenge to the Waqf (Amendment) Act, the Supreme Court on Thursday recorded the Union Government’s assurance that no appointments will be made to the Waqf Council or Waqf Boards under Sections 9 and 14 of the Act until further notice.
Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta appearing for the Union sought time to respond to the writ petitions and assured the Court that no appointments would be made under the contested provisions in the interim period.
The Supreme Court took this assurance on record.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna, Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice K.V. Viswanathan also passed interim directions that no existing waqf , including those registered, declared by notification, or established by long-standing user shall be denotified or subjected to change of Collector until the next date of hearing.
The Chief Justice clarified that this blanket protection also includes “waqf by user,” as urged by senior advocate Kapil Sibal during the hearing.
Highlighting the need for streamlining the process, the Bench directed that only five writ petitions would be treated as the principal matters. The remaining petitions will be marked as disposed of for administrative convenience.
The Court further directed that the matters will be referred to collectively under the title “Waqf (Amendment) Act” without naming individual parties.
To ensure coordinated submissions, nodal counsel were appointed, with Advocate Kanu Agarwal designated as the nodal counsel for the Union of India.
Additionally, the Court clarified that writ petitions challenging the original Waqf Act, 1995, and the 2013 Amendment Act shall be listed separately from those concerning the 2023 Amendment.
The timeline for pleadings was also set:
Union of India and Waqf Boards to file replies within 7 days.
Rejoinders to be filed within 5 days thereafter
Liberty granted to petitioners in 2025 writs to file their responses as a special case.
The matter is now listed for a preliminary hearing on the next date, which will be confined to directions and interim reliefs, if necessary.
Tentatively, the next date of hearing is May 5 at 2 pm.
UNI SNG SJC