The Supreme Court on Monday passed an interim order on a plea challenging the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, which gives the government wider powers to regulate waqf properties. In today’s hearing, the court will take up three major issues, including whether properties already classified as Waqf can be denotified under the new law.

On May 22, a bench led by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai had reserved the order after hearing arguments for three consecutive days. Lawyers representing the petitioners argued against the amended law, while Solicitor General Tushar Mehta defended it on behalf of the Centre.

The law, which came into force on April 8, removes the ‘Waqf by user’ clause, a provision that allowed properties to be considered Waqf if used for religious or charitable purposes over time, even without legal documents. Apart from the denotification issue, petitioners have also questioned the composition of state Waqf boards and the Central Waqf Council, saying only Muslims (except ex officio members) should be part of them.

The third contentious issue concerns the clause that excludes a property from being treated as Waqf if a collector’s inquiry finds it to be government land. While the Centre has firmly defended the law, calling Waqf a “secular concept” and stressing that Acts of Parliament carry a presumption of constitutionality, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioners, argued that the law marks a “complete departure from established legal and constitutional principles” and could be used to “capture Waqf through a non-judicial process.”

Earlier, on April 25, the Ministry of Minority Affairs filed an affidavit opposing any blanket stay on the legislation. The Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, was notified on April 8, following presidential assent from Droupadi Murmu on April 5. The Bill was cleared in Parliament with 288–232 votes in the Lok Sabha and 128–95 in the Rajya Sabha. Its passage also triggered widespread protests in West Bengal earlier this year.