Waqf Amendment Bill: Centre Suspects 'CAA-Type' Resistance But Is Confident Of NDA Numbers

Last Updated:April 01, 2025, 07:00 IST

Union minister Kiren Rijiju advised the opposition not to adopt similar tactics as it did during the time of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, and said the Centre intended to bring the Waqf legislation to Parliament

The total Lok Sabha strength is 542, so the support of 272 MPs is needed for a majority, which puts the NDA in a comfortable position. (Image: PTI/File)

Expecting “CAA-type" resistance from the opposition and All India Muslim Personal Law Board to derail the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, the Centre is confident that NDA numbers are stacked in its favour in Parliament to pass the important legislation.

Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday advised the opposition not to adopt similar tactics as it did during the time of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, or the CAA, and said the central government intended to bring the Waqf legislation to Parliament.

“The opposition and All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) are adopting the same playbook for the Waqf protests as they did during the anti-CAA protests. The government is cognisant of the same and does not want to send the Waqf bill into cold storage. In fact, it wants to pass the bill in this session," a top government source told CNN-News18.

The source pointed to Rijiju’s warning that the opposition and AIMPLB should stop spreading “rumours and falsehoods" about the Waqf bill, as they did during the CAA protests during the second term of the Democratic Alliance (NDA).

NUMBERS IN NDA’S FAVOUR

According to top sources, the government is confident that numbers are stacked in favour of the NDA, and the BJP is confident of full support from its allies like the Janata Dal (United), Telugu Desam Party, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) and Rashtriya Lok Dal as the joint parliamentary committee (JPC) “has taken care of their concerns".

AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi recently said “Muslims won’t forgive Nitish Kumar, Chandrababu Naidu, Chirag Paswan and Jayant Chaudhary" if they support the Waqf (Amendment) Bill in Parliament, “as BJP can’t get the bill passed otherwise".

The NDA in the Lok Sabha has 293 MPs, including the BJP’s 240, 12 of the JD(U), 16 of the TDP, 5 of the LJP, two of the RLD and seven of the Shiv Sena. The total Lok Sabha strength is 542, so the support of 272 MPs is needed for a majority – this puts the NDA in a comfortable position.

The NDA in the Rajya Sabha has 123 MPs, including the BJP’s 98, four of the JD(U), two of the TDP, three of the NCP, and one of the RLD in Jayant Chaudhary. The total Rajya Sabha strength is 236, so the support of 119 MPs is needed for a majority; this, too, gives the NDA a slight edge in the Upper House. The unity of the alliance, however, will be key.

The government is likely to bring the Waqf (Amendment) Bill to the Lok Sabha on Wednesday (April 2), and then in the Rajya Sabha. The budget session is scheduled to end on April 4.

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