Congress in Kerala rejects BJP’s ‘devious’ attempt to link Munambam land dispute to Waqf Bill

UDF rejects BJP's claim on Waqf Amendment Bill, accusing BJP of creating discord between minorities in Kerala.

The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) has rejected the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) claim that the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2024, passed by Lok Sabha late on Wednesday (April 2, 2025), was a victory for the beleaguered residents of Munambam fighting to regain their ownership rights. 

Speaking to reporters in Ernakulam on Thursday (April 3), Kerala’s Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan accused the BJP of trying to put minorities at loggerheads with each other by misleadingly linking the Munambam land issue to the “objectionable Bill muscled through” the Lok Sabha by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre. 

He said Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, had clarified in Lok Sabha that the Bill had no retrospective effect and hence had no bearing on the Munambam land dispute.

Mr. Satheesan accused the BJP of sowing discord between minorities in Kerala by interpreting the Waqf Bill solely through the prism of the Munambam land issue. “Larger issues are at stake, including secularism, minority rights and Constitutional guarantees”, he added. 

Mr. Satheesan said the Communist Party of India (Marxist)‘s [CPI(M)] “wilful delay” in settling the Munambam land issue had “worked to the advantage of Sangh Parivar forces seeking to drive a wedge between Christian and Muslim communities in the State.”

He noted that the Kerala Waqf Board (KWB) was populated by political appointees nominated by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government. 

“The LDF could easily persuade the KWB to give up its claim over the land sold by the Farooq College management to Munambam residents. However, the CPI(M) allowed the issue to fester, possibly to undercut the UDF’s secular minority base ahead of the local body polls (in 2025) and the Assembly elections in 2026,” he said.