Hyderabad: In a renewed wave of demonstrations, members of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) staged a massive human chain protest across Hyderabad on Sunday, May 25, to oppose the controversial Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, reported the Siasat.
Protesters, donning black armbands to signal dissent, gathered in several locations across the city. Among the prominent leaders participating were Charminar MLA Mir Zulfeqar Ali and senior AIMIM figure and Chandrayangutta MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi, who also led a separate chain near Owaisi Hospital.
These protests come after a brief pause following the tragic Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir that claimed 26 lives. Demonstrations have now resumed across India under the AIMPLB’s nationwide campaign titled “Waqf Bachao, Dastur Bachao” (Save Waqf, Save Constitution).
According to AIMPLB spokesperson Dr. SQR Ilyas, the movement includes large public meetings, civil society roundtables, and local-level protests like human chains and silent demonstrations. The latest phase of the protest began on May 18 in Telangana’s Warangal district.
The Waqf Amendment Act officially became law on April 8, 2025. Critics, including several Muslim organizations and opposition MPs, argue that the new law infringes upon the rights of Indian Muslims and threatens their control over Waqf properties such as mosques, dargahs, schools, hospitals, and valuable endowment lands.
On April 30, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi and local residents participated in a symbolic protest by switching off lights in homes and businesses. The protest was a silent rejection of the Act’s implementation in the city.
While the Union government maintains that the Act promotes transparency and empowers backward Muslims and women, widespread protests suggest a growing disconnect between policy intentions and community perceptions.
