Chandrababu will not let any bill pass that harms Muslims' interests: TDP

Amid opposition to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill from several Muslim bodies, senior leader of key NDA ally TDP, Nawab Jan, on Sunday said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu will not let any bill that harms the interests of Muslims be implemented.

Addressing the 'Samvidhan Bachao Sammelan' organised by Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium here, Jan said everyone should come together unitedly to stop the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024 from being passed in Parliament.

Chandrababu Naidu has always said he has two eyes -- one Hindu and one Muslim, Jan said.

"He (Naidu) says any harm done to one eye affects the whole body and we must keep this in mind as we move forward on the path of development," Jan said.

The benefits that Muslims got under Naidu's rule are unprecedented since the independence of the country, Jan, a senior leader of the Telegu Desam Party, said.

"Chandrababu is a person of a secular mindset -- such a person is our chief minister, (he) will not let a bill that harms Muslims be implemented," he said.

The TDP leader claimed that sending the Waqf (Amendment) Bill to Parliament's Joint Committee (JPC) was also possible because of Naidu and he had stalled this bill from being passed for the time being by doing so.

Jan also claimed that Naidu had given a statement a few days ago that whether it is a Muslim institution or a Hindu institution or a Christian institution, it should have people of the same religion.

"We will tolerate everything, but will not tolerate any attempt to harm the unity of the country," Jan said.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) does not have a majority in the Lok Sabha and its government at the Centre is reliant on the support of other parties such as the TDP and the Janata Dal (U).

A Joint Committee of Parliament is examining the contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024.

The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha in August and referred to a Joint Parliamentary panel after a heated debate, with the government asserting the proposed law, did not intend to interfere with the functioning of mosques and the Opposition calling it a targeting of Muslims and an attack on the Constitution.

The committee's meetings have often seen tempers fly with opposition members accusing the Chair of inviting different organisations, including those working for Hindu causes, that have no stake in the waqf issues and the BJP members charging their political rivals with deliberately disturbing the proceedings.