'This was done intentionally, politically, to divide the country': West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee On Waqf Amendment Bill

The much-discussed Waqf bill has been passed in Lok Sabha on Wednesday. Post the decision oppositions are expressing their views on it. While speaking to media West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee stated that this bill was done intentionally and politically to divide the country and one day will come when the other govt will do another amendment will happen and it will be passed in Lok Sabaha and Rajya Sabha. There was 12-hour debate over the bill and by securing 288 votes in favor and 232 against the bill was passed. BJP received the support from its allies, including TDP, JD (U) , Shiv Sena and LJP. Mamata Banerjee said, "...This was done intentionally, politically, to divide the country...But one day, they will go away, and the other Government will come. At that time, you must remember there will be another amendment, and it will be passed in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha."

Following its passage in the Lok Sabha, the bill is expected to easily pass in the Rajya Sabha. Despite the predictable 'secular versus communal' debate in the LS, the bill's smooth passage represents a significant step forward.  Meanwhile, Mamata Banerjee on Thursday claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) are trying to get the entire education system in the state collapsed. She said this while reacting to the verdict by the Supreme Court to uphold a previous order by the Calcutta High Court last year cancelling all the appointments in the teaching and non-teaching categories made by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) for 2016. She, however, did not make it clear whether the state government would make a review petition to the Supreme Court on the recent order.

#WATCH | Howrah: On #WaqfAmendmentBill, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee says, "...This was done intentionally, politically, to divide the country...But one day, they will go away, and the other Government will come. At that time, you must remember there will be another amendment,… pic.twitter.com/geF9WvtWKm

— ANI (@ANI) April 3, 2025

Also Read: Waqf Amendment Bill: What Will Change If Bill Is Passed in Parliament?

The Chief Minister strongly criticized CPI-M Rajya Sabha member Bikas Ranjan Bhattacharya, a senior advocate who has been involved in the cash-for-school-jobs case from the beginning. She also took a swipe at BJP Lok Sabha member Abhijit Ganguly, a former Calcutta High Court judge who initially ordered the CBI investigation into the scam—though she never mentioned him by name. She pointed out that a former judge, who is now a BJP MP, was the first to speak about job cancellations, hinting at a political agenda behind the issue. In a sarcastic remark, she even suggested that Bhattacharya, who represents the affected candidates, deserved a Nobel Prize for his role in getting jobs canceled.