Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind (JUH) has condemned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent statement that “there is no place for waqf law in the Constitution”, terming the remark as ‘frivolous’.

The JUH protested the statement on Monday, the day the winter session of Parliament commenced. The National Democratic Alliance government has listed the Waqf Amendment Bill for consideration and passage during the session.

The opposition parties and several Muslim organisations have vociferously protested the bill, which aims to restrict the power of waqf boards to manage its properties and provides for more government regulation.

JUH president Maulana Arshad Madani said, “I was appalled to learn that Prime Minister Modi has expressed the view that waqf should be done away with since there is no provision in its favour in the Constitution. We did not expect such a frivolous remark from the prime minister of India.”

Madani claimed that waqf is a crucial part of Islam, mentioned in the Hadith, and Muslims are responsible for protecting it. He argued that the statement by Prime Minister Modi, made during his address to Bharatiya Janata Party workers in New Delhi on Saturday, was not only ill-informed but could also lead to the unnecessary restriction of Muslims’ religious rights in India.

“Tomorrow, it may be said that Muslims would not be allowed to offer namaz, go for Haj pilgrimage and give away zakat (alms) since these too find no mention in the Constitution,” Madani said.

“The prime minister should know that waqf is an integral part of Islam and it finds mention in the Hadith, which are words spoken by our Prophet. As such, it is the duty of Muslims to safeguard waqf,” he added.

“The prime minister should also remember that the country’s secular Constitution grants every religious minority the right to practice its faith. And Muslims are claiming that right by opposing the Waqf Bill,” Maulana Madani said.

He also urged Janata Dal (United) chief and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, and the NDA allies who the BJP depends on for staying in power at the Centre, not to support the Waqf Bill, stating that doing so “would be tantamount to stabbing Muslims in the back”.

“The ruling dispensation of the state is the crutch on which the Centre stands. The powers that be in the state claim they would not let Muslims suffer. The waqf issue presents them with an opportunity to walk the talk. If they dither, the community must decide whether or not to trust them anymore,” Madani said, indirectly referring to Nitish and Naidu.

The JUH chief accused the BJP government of practising the “politics of hate”. He said Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma spent months in Jharkhand “labelling Muslims as infiltrators”. He (Sarma) should remember that most of the Muslims are of Indian origin, Madani added.Assam Chief Minister Sarma was the BJP’s co-in-charge of the assembly elections in Jharkhand.

Referring to the BJP’s defeat in the Jharkhand assembly elections, Madani said, “Those who were trying to spread hate have been humiliated. It is God’s mercy, no doubt, but we must acknowledge that Hindus too stood up with us in the fight.”

Speaking at an event at BJP headquarters in Delhi on Saturday, Prime Minister Modi had accused Congress of “appeasement politics” and said it framed law concerning Waqf Board which has no mandate in the Constitution.

“Congress made laws for appeasement. They did not even care about the Supreme Court’s order. An example of this is the Waqf Board. The people of Delhi will be surprised. The situation was that before leaving the government in 2014, these people had handed over many properties of Delhi and surrounding areas to the Waqf Board. There is no place for waqf law in the Constitution given to us by Babasaheb Ambedkar, but the Congress did this to increase its vote bank,” Prime Minister had said