Capturing Waqf Property a Great Sin: How Gadkari and Fadnavis Championed th eWaqf Act in 2007
The Waqf Act amendments may be under challenge in the Supreme Court, with the Bharatiya Janata Party defending its move, but in 2007, BJP leaders Devendra Fadnavis and Nitin Gadkari had stood in Maharashtra’s legislative assembly and raised their voice against the plunder of Muslim Waqf lands.
Back then, the BJP were in the opposition. In 18 years, the same leaders are leading faces of the party backing a Waqf amendment that many Muslims fear will snatch away their control and rights over their religious places.
How did Fadnavis and Gadkari, once apparent guardians of Muslim rights, become champions of a law which critics refer to as a betrayal?
To uncover this story, we delved into the archives, physically procuring the 2007 speeches of Devendra Fadnavis and Nitin Gadkari from the Vidhan Bhavan library in Maharashtra, as digital records of legislative debates, are available only from 2012 onwards.
Defending Muslim trust
In July 2007, the Maharashtra legislature was a battleground for opposition leaders eager to haul up the ruling Congress-NCP coalition. Devendra Fadnavis, then a 37-year-old MLA from Nagpur West, and Nitin Gadkari, a seasoned Member of the Legislative Council representing Nagpur’s graduates, seized the moment to speak on “the plunder of Waqf properties”. Their speeches, delivered in Marathi, painted a picture of systemic corruption that robbed Muslims of their religious endowments.
Fadnavis took aim at two high-profile cases: the sale of 147 acres of Waqf land in Aurangabad to Nirman Bharati and the transfer of a Malabar Hill plot to billionaire Mukesh Ambani for his own residential project. He argued these transactions flouted the Waqf Act of 1954 and 1996, which mandate that disputes over Waqf properties be resolved by a Waqf Tribunal, not civil courts.
“खऱ्या अर्थाने या ठिकाणी वक्फची जमीन होती त्यावेळी १९५४ चा कायदा अस्तित्वात होता… या सर्व कायद्यानुसार वक्फच्या संदर्भातील एखाद्या जमिनीचा विवाद असेल तर तो विवाद सोडविण्याचे अधिकार सिव्हील कोर्टाला नाहीत. ते अधिकार ट्राइब्यूनल कोर्टाला आहेत,” he declared in the Maharashtra assembly on July 18, 2007.
“When this was Waqf land, the 1954 Act was in existence…According to all these laws, if there is a dispute regarding Waqf land, the authority to resolve that dispute does not lie with the civil court. That authority lies with the Tribunal court.”
Also read: Waqf 2025: Beyond Supreme Court Hearing, Doubts About Constitutionality of the Act Still Persist
His point was unmistakable: the government’s bypassing of Waqf Tribunals was illegal and a betrayal of Muslim rights.
Fadnavis did not stop at that. He appealed directly to the Muslim community, urging action to restore their faith in governance.
“आपण ट्राइब्युनलमध्ये गेला नाहीत. आज सुद्धा आपण ट्रायब्युनलमध्ये गेलेला नाहीत."
"You did not go to the Tribunal. Even today, you have not gone to the Tribunal.”
He chided the government, pointing out their failure to seek the tribunal's approval in Mukesh Ambani’s land procurement. In his closing plea, he called for a transparent inquiry by a sitting high court judge, warning that failure to act would shatter Muslim trust. “The Muslim community is watching this assembly to see if justice will be served,” he said, framing himself as their advocate against the alleged exploitation.
Gadkari, speaking in the Legislative Council, was equally scathing. He accused the Waqf Board’s chairman, Dr. M.A. Aziz, of orchestrating “secular corruption” by selling off lands meant for mosques, dargahs, and orphanages. Citing the 1995 Waqf Act, he argued that sales required a two-thirds majority from the Board, which was never obtained.
“कायद्यामधील ५६ कलमामध्ये म्हटलेले आहे की… ".
"A lease or sub-lease for any period exceeding three years of any immovable property which is wakf property shall… be void and of no effect,” he quoted, slamming illegal transfers.
“Section 56 of the law states that a lease or sub-lease for any period exceeding three years of any immovable Waqf property shall… be void and of no effect.”
He said lands in Aurangabad, Nanded, and Beed were sold for a pittance – Rs 10 lakh for 10 acres in Beed, a fraction of their worth.
Gadkari, in his speech made on July 17, 2007, invoked Islamic principles.
“वक्फची संपत्ती घेणे, वापरणे हे फार मोठे पाप मानले जाते… अल्लाह के नाम पर जो गरीबों के लिए दान किया जाता है, इस जमीन पर नज़र रखना… यह मुस्लीम धर्म में बहुत बड़ा अपराध माना गया है,” he said, referencing Sharia and the Quran.
“Taking or using Waqf property is considered a great sin… Eyeing, benefiting from, or taking land donated in the name of Allah for the poor is considered a great crime in Islam.”
He called the alleged plunder an “insult” to Muslims, accusing “self-styled champions of minorities” of betraying them. He demanded a CBI inquiry.
Both leaders positioned themselves as guardians of Muslim rights, wielding the Waqf Act as a shield against corruption.
The 2025 pivot
In 2025, Fadnavis, now Maharashtra’s chief minister, and Gadkari, Union road minister, are in the top echelons of the BJP. The Waqf (Amendment) Act, debated fiercely since its 2024 introduction as a Bill, has radical changes: the mandatory registration of Waqf properties with district collectors, government audits, elimination of ‘waqf by use’, and non-Muslims in Waqf Boards. The BJP frames it as a crusade against corruption, and claim to be ensuring Waqf lands serve marginalised Muslims. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board calls it a state-sponsored grab, eroding Muslim control over their endowments.
Fadnavis, in a 2024 interview with The Hindu, defended the amendment. “Waqf provisions were draconian, so it was about time to amend them. Waqf in the name of Allah should be transparent; that’s why we need to change it.”
He critiqued the existing Waqf framework as “draconian”. His call for transparency echoes his 2007 outrage at mismanagement, but his solution now embraces state intervention. This marks a reversal from his 2007 insistence that “सिव्हील कोर्टच्या ज्युरिस्डीक्शनमध्ये नाही ते त्या ठिकाणी झालेले आहे” – "civil courts had no jurisdiction, only tribunals did." The act's provision for higher court appeals directly undermines the exclusivity of the Tribunal he once championed.
Gadkari, in a 2024 News18 interview, framed the amendment as a universal good. “The Waqf amendment is in everybody’s interest. Many have encroached on land through Waqf. These lands will be used to build schools, medical colleges, and skill development institutes. It is not right to oppose this because of vote-bank politics.”
Also read: Waqf Bill Passage Proves Indian Muslims are Political Orphans
His vision of repurposing Waqf lands for public institutions aligns with the government’s view, but it clashes with his own 2007 defence of Waqf Board autonomy.
“यक्फ बोर्डाच्या जमिनीला कोणताही कायदा लागत नाही आणि केवळ १९९५ चा वक्फ कायदा लागू होतो,” he had argued.
“No other law applies to Waqf Board properties, only the 1995 Waqf Act applies.”
A betrayal?
Milind Pakhale, a political activist who remembers both these speeches said, “Gadkari and Fadnavis are Sanghis. Hegemony is the prime objective of Sanghis. They don't have qualms of consciousness. They are miles away from basic morality. That is how, in 2007, they fought for the provisions of the Waqf Act and in 2025, they are taking a contradictory stand and are conspiring to abolish the same provisions.”
For Muslims, the differences are damning. As Gadkari said in 2007, “एकाप्रकारे हा मुस्लीम समाजाचा अपमान आहे" – "in a way, this is an insult to the Muslim community.”
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