Congress leader Imran Pratapgarhi attempted to link the passage of Waqf Amendment Bill and the imposition of 26 per cent tariffs on India by US President Donald Trump.
“The parliament was working until 2 in the morning, and at 1:30 am, the US imposed tariffs. The country and especially the BJP voters must understand that this Waqf (Amendment) Bill was pre-planned to deviate people from the issue of tariffs,”Pratapgarhi, the Rajya Sabha MP of the Congress party told news agency ANI.
The Lok Sabha passed the controversial Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2025 in the wee hours of April 3, after over a 12-hour debate. The ruling NDA members strongly defended the legislation as beneficial for minorities, while the opposition described it as “anti-Muslim” during the debate.
US President Donald Trump announced sweeping reciprocal tariffs on the trading partners of the world’s largest economy on April 2.
Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ announcements had no country-specific exclusions as he announced new tariff rates for more than 180 countries. Apart from country-specific tariffs, Trump also announced the imposition of a 10 per cent baseline tariff.
This Waqf (Amendment) Bill was pre-planned to deviate people from the issue of tariffs.
“The US imposed 26% tariffs, but the government is not ready to talk about that, and I have heard that the PM has now gone to Thailand,” Pratapgarhi said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Bangkok on a visit to Thailand to participate in the 6th BIMSTEC Summit on Thursday morning. Modi will proceed on a state visit to Sri Lanka from Thailand.
The Waqf Bill passed in Lok Sabha will now be taken up in Rajya Sabha.
Second-class citizens
About a dozen Opposition Members of Parliament (MP) from the Muslim community spoke against the Waqf Amendment Bill, 2025 in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday-Thursday. In unison, these MPs said that the legislation undermined the Muslim community’s rights, gave the government a handle to control the Waqfs and deepened religious divides.
AIMIM chiefAsaduddin Owaisiled the Muslim leaders’ charge against the Bill. Owaisi, the Hyderabad MP, symbolically tore up a copy of the Bill, asserting that its motive was to make Muslims “second-class citizens”.
