Lok Sabha Question No. 2923 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-17
Subject: Safeguards, Registration & Transparency in Waqf Property Management
Ministry: MINORITY AFFAIRS
Asked by: Shri Kamakhya Prasad Tasa

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.  2923

TO BE ANSWERED ON 17.12.2025

## SAFEGUARDS, REGISTRATION & TRANSPARENCY IN WAQF PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

## 2923.  SHRI KAMAKHYA PRASAD TASA:

Will the Minister of Minority Affairs be please to State:-

- (a) the details of safeguards that have been introduced under the  Unified  Waqf  Management, Empowerment,  Efficiency  and  Development  Act,  1995  to  prevent  arbitrary  or  unilateral  declaration  of private or public land as waqf;
- (b) whether the Act mandates a formal enquiry before registering any property as waqf and if so, the details thereof along with the competent authority for such enquiry;
- (c) the manner in which the registration and validation process under the Act ensures transparency, public disclosure and protection against unverifiable claims;
- (d) the details of role assigned to District Collectors and revenue officials in verifying waqf land records and preventing encroachments or false claims; and
- (e)  the  manner  in  which  the  UMEED  Central  Portal  has  improved  access  to  waqf-related  information, public services and grievance redressal mechanisms?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## (SHRI KIREN RIJIJU)

(a)  to  (c)  The  Unified  Waqf  Management,  Empowerment,  Efficiency  and  Development  Act,  1995,  as amended  by  the  Waqf  (Amendment)  Act,  2025,  provides  following  safeguards  to  prevent  arbitrary  or unilateral  declaration  of  private  or  public  land  as  waqf  and  improve  measures  to  enhance  transparency, accountability, and lawful management of waqf properties:

(i) As  per  Section  3A  of  the  Act,  waqf  creation  requires  the  individual  to  be  the  lawful  owner  of  the property and competent to transfer or dedicate it.

(ii) A  waqf  deed  is  mandatory  for  registering  new  waqf  properties  as  waqf,  ensuring  proper documentation.

(iii) As per Section 36 of the Act, 1995, all waqf registration applications must be submitted on the UMEED Central Portal -2025.  The  Waqf  Boards  forward  the  application  to  the  District  Collector,  who conducts an inquiry to verify the claim's genuineness and validity of the application  and correctness of particulars.

(iv) Section  40  of  the  Waqf  Act,  1995,  which  previously  allowed  the  Waqf  Board  to  declare properties  as  waqf  based  on  collected  information  has  now  been  omitted  under  the  Waqf  (Amendment) Act, 2025.

(d) The  Collector  is  responsible  for  verifying  genuineness  and  accuracy  of  details  of  new  waqf registration applications submitted on the UMEED Central Portal-2025 and also entrusted with conducting surveys of waqf properties to prevent encroachment and alienation of waqf assets.

(e)    As per the Section 3(ka) of the Act, the Ministry has launched the statutory UMEED Central Portal -2025 on 06.06.2025 for uploading details of existing waqf and the property dedicated to the waqf, which also  automate  entire  lifecycle  of  waqf  properties,  including  registration,  verification,  survey  by  the Collector,  mutation,  annual  account  updates,  audit,  leasing  and  monitoring,  ensuring  transparency, efficiency and effective management and faster grievance redressal. The Portal operates on a three-tier user architecture  Maker,  Checker,  and  Approver  to  ensure  real-time,  verified  data  entry  and  maintain  data integrity by preventing uploading of irrelevant or incorrect details of existing auqaf.

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