Ruckus in Parliament as JPC meeting on Waqf Bill turns ugly; TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee throws glass bottle, ‘hurts himself’

A meeting of the Joint Committee of Parliament (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill in Parliament turned ugly on Monday. Sources said that Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kalyan Banerjee smashed a glass water bottle and threw it away during a heated exchange of words with BJP's Abhijit Gangopadhyay. Banerjee “hurt himself by accident”.

Newswire ANI reported, quoting sources, that a scuffle broke out during the Waqf JPC meeting in Parliament. According to eyewitnesses, TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee “picked up a glass water bottle and hit it on the table and hurt himself by accident”, the ANI report said.

“Banerjee ended up hurting his thumb and index finger and had to be given first aid. He was later seen being escorted back to the meeting room by AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi and AAP leader Sanjay Singh,” sources added.

A video showed Kalyan Banerjee being escorted to the meeting following his treatment.

The officials also offered the TMC member soup.

Kalyan Banerjee suspended

TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee was suspended for one day (i.e two meetings) from the Parliamentary committee on Waqf for unruly conduct, sources said. The decision was taken under the Lok Sabha rule 261 and 374(1)(2).

BJP MP Nishikant Dubey had moved the motion to suspend Banerjee. Nine members voted in favour of the suspension, and eight voted against it.

"Kalyan Banerjee, a member of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Waqf, was suspended for one day under Rules 261 and 374(1)(2) of the Lok Sabha for his choice of wrong words against Chairman of the Committee, Shri Jagdambika Pal, and behaviour of smashing a bottle and throwing it towards the Chairman. He is suspended for two sittings," sources said.

Reacting to the high drama that ensued in Parliament on Tuesday, BJP MP Jagdambika Pal said, “In my 40 years of parliamentary life, during which I have been chairman of several committees... we may have differences but what has happened today, we cannot even imagine such incident taking place.”

Drama at JPC meetings

The Joint Committee of Parliament on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, met on Tuesday at the Parliament Annexe building in New Delhi. The committee aims to reform the Waqf Act.

The ruckus on Tuesday broke out when the committee chaired by BJP's Jagdambika Pal was listening to the views of a group of retired judges and lawyers when the opposition members questioned their stake in the bill.

The committee also met on Monday, inviting officials from the Ministry of Minority Affairs to provide oral evidence regarding the bill.

On Monday as well, discussions during the JPC meeting became heated as opposition members questioned the consultative process behind the legislation, news agency ANI reported.

The opposition members accused the government of introducing the bill for political reasons, alleging it targeted the Muslim community.

AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi presented a nearly one-hour critique of the bill on Monday, raising concerns about its implications. Trinamool Congress leader Kalyan Banerjee asked whether Waqf, which exists in the name of Allah, is legally recognised by the state.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, reports say, seeks “reforms, introducing digitisation, stricter audits, transparency and legal mechanisms to reclaim illegally occupied properties”.

According to reports, the JPC is holding a series of meetings to gather input from government officials, legal experts, Waqf Board members and community representatives from different states and Union Territories, aiming for the most comprehensive reform possible.