New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to urgently list an application challenging the Union Government’s newly launched ‘Umeed Portal’, which makes online registration of all waqfs — including “waqfs by user” — compulsory, reported the Live Law.
The digital portal, introduced under the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development Act, 1995, requires geo-tagging and inventory of all waqf properties within six months. Critics warn that compliance would be nearly impossible for historic waqf sites such as mosques and graveyards that do not have formal documentation.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai observed that the matter will be addressed in the Court’s pending judgment on petitions challenging the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025. “You register it, nobody is refusing you from registration … we will be considering that part,” the CJI remarked, responding to submissions made by advocate Sharukh Alam, who sought urgent listing of the plea.
Alam argued that the online process cannot practically be followed for waqfs by user and noted that an application had been filed for relief. However, the registry declined to list the matter since the final verdict in the larger challenge has already been reserved. On May 22, a bench comprising CJI Gavai and Justice AG Masih had reserved orders on the plea against the 2025 amendments.
The Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025 has sparked widespread criticism from Muslim organizations, opposition leaders, and legal experts, who allege that it undermines the community’s constitutional rights. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and leaders like Asaduddin Owaisi have argued that the amendments dilute Muslim authority over waqf properties and infringe upon Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution, which guarantee religious freedom and the right to manage religious affairs.
Key changes under the controversial law include: omission of the “waqf by user” provision, inclusion of non-Muslim members in waqf boards, restriction of women’s representation to two members, a five-year practising Muslim requirement for creating waqf, dilution of waqf-alal-aulad, application of the Limitation Act, restriction on creating waqf over ASI-protected monuments, and increased government powers in disputes over encroached properties.
The matter now awaits the Supreme Court’s reserved judgment, even as concerns grow that the six-month deadline for digital registration may severely impact many longstanding waqf institutions.
