BJP attacks Rahul Gandhi’s ‘belated’ response to Waqf Act

Former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. File.
| Photo Credit: V.V. Krishnan

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday (April 10, 2025) asked the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi if he was uncomfortable with the empowerment of deprived women and girls, and the extremely backward Pasmanda Muslims via the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025. Terming Mr. Gandhi’s response in the matter belated, the party said the Congress leader had not addressed the core issues.

At a press conference, former Union Minister and BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad said Mr. Gandhi, who did not speak during the debate on the Bill in the Lok Sabha, finally commented on it at the Congress Working Committee meeting in Ahmedabad, but lacked clarity of thought and did not have anything to say on key issues.

“He said that the Act was unconstitutional,…we had explained in detail in Parliament that it is completely constitutional…I have three questions for him. Rahul Gandhi-ji, please tell me that no hospital, school, orphanage, skill centre, etc., has been built on the Waqf properties, which are over eight lakh. Do you think it is right or wrong for the daughters of poor Muslims?,” he said.

“Do you have a problem if Waqf is being reformed for the betterment of the women, widows, of the Muslim community?…and thirdly, nowadays someone has given you a chit for OBC (Other Backward Class)…if you are worried about the development of backward, the extremely backward Pasmanda Muslims would benefit from the amendment, do you have any problem from that?” Mr. Prasad said.

The BJP leader claimed that OBCs had little say in the decision-making within the Congress party, whereas the BJP had several OBC leaders as Chief Ministers, Union Ministers, and senior functionaries of the party. He said Ram Nath Kovind, a Dalit, and Droupadi Murmu, who comes from a tribal community, became President of India during the Modi government. The contributions of many unsung freedom fighters had been acknowledged and honoured during the BJP-led rule, he said.

Criticising the Congress leadership, Mr. Prasad said that slogans, including “Sonia Gandhi Hindustan, Rahul Gandhi Hindustan” had been raised at the Ahmedabad meet, and no attempt had been made to stop them. He likened the slogans to that of “India is Indira, Indira is India”. He also called out Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for favouring ballot papers over Electronic Voting Machines.

Mr. Prasad targeted West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, asking if she would take stringent action against those who had given inflammatory speeches in Murshidabad during protests against the Waqf (Amendment) Act.