‘Stop applying Waqf Act in tribal areas in Raj, Guj & MP’

Jaipur/Udaipur: Udaipur MP Manna Lal Rawat has urged the governors and chief ministers of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh to stop the application of the Waqf Act, 1995, in the Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) areas of the three states.
In a letter dated Sep 19, addressed to Rajasthan Governor Haribhau Bagde, Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat, and Madhya Pradesh Governor Mangubhau C Patel, and CMs Bhajan Lal Sharma (Rajasthan), Bhupendra Patel (Gujarat) and Mohan Yadav (Madhya Pradesh), Rawat said Waqf properties in tribal regions are hindering the cultural and developmental rights of the indigenous populations.
Rawat’s concerns focus on the presence of dargahs, madrasas and kabristans (graveyards) in the tribal districts of Udaipur, Dungarpur, Banswara and Pratapgarh, which, he claimed, affect the traditional culture and demographic composition of these areas.
“The govt should issue a notification calling the Waqf Act, 1995, null and void,” said the MP in the letter, arguing that these properties, governed under the Waqf Act, are “diluting the indigenous culture and threatening the traditional way of life” in the region. Rawat said these tribal areas fall under the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, which grants special protection to indigenous communities and allows them to safeguard their land and heritage.