39. Amendment of section 83 (THE WAQF (AMENDMENT) BILL 2025)

39. Amendment of section 83 (THE WAQF (AMENDMENT) BILL 2025)

39. In section 83 of the principal Act,—

(a) in sub-section (1), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
“Provided that any other Tribunal may, by notification, be declared as the Tribunal for the purposes of this Act.”;

(b) in sub-section (2), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
“Provided that if there is no Tribunal or the Tribunal is not functioning, any aggrieved person may appeal to the High Court directly.”;

(c) for sub-section (4), the following shall be substituted, namely:—
“(4) Every Tribunal shall consist of three members—

(a) one person, who is or has been a District Judge, who shall be the Chairman;

(b) one person, who is or has been an officer equivalent in the rank of Joint Secretary to the State Government—member;

(c) one person having knowledge of Muslim law and jurisprudence—member:
Provided that a Tribunal established under this Act, prior to the commencement of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, shall continue to function as such until the expiry of the term of office of the
Chairman and the members thereof under this Act.”;

(d) in sub-section (4A), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:—
“Provided that tenure of the Chairman and the member shall be five years from the date of appointment or until they attain the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier.”;

(e) in sub-section (7), the words “final and” shall be omitted;

(f) for sub-section (9), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:—
“(9) Any person aggrieved by the order of the Tribunal, may appeal to the High Court within a period of ninety days from the date of receipt of the order of the Tribunal.”.