128 votes were in favour of the Bill and 95 against

New Delhi: The Waqf Bill, after a smooth passage through Lok Sabha, breezed through the Rajya Sabha 24 hours later, after yet another marathon debate. On its way, it exposed a chink in the armour of the parties opposing the Bill. The voting was 128 votes in favour of the Bill and 95 against it.

Just a few hours before the voting, Naveen Patkaik’s Biju Janata Dal opened the gates for a ‘conscience vote’ telling its seven Upper House MPs that they would not be bound by a whip and could vote for whichever side they wanted.

The party’s senior leader Sasmit Patra, in a post on X, said they took that view after taking into consideration the sentiments of “different sections of the Minority communities regarding the Waqf (Amendment) Bill”.

The arguments, though, were on expected lines. Minorities Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, opening the debate, dismissed allegations that the Bill would harm Muslim interests and asserted that non-Muslims cannot interfere in the Waqf Board’s affairs as its management, creation and beneficiaries would remain exclusively Muslims.

Emphasising his argument that the Bill is not about religion but property and its management and aims to root out corruption, he said proof of ownership will now be required before a property is declared Waqf. This, he added, will eliminate the previous provision where any claim by the Waqf Board automatically led to its designation as Waqf property.