New Delhi, April 17 (IANS) A delegation of the Dawoodi Bohra community on Thursday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and acquainted him with the problems of the erstwhile Waqf (Amendment) Act.

PM Modi, along with the Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, met a delegation of the Dawoodi Bohra community at the Prime Minister’s House in New Delhi on Thursday.

One of the members told the Prime Minister that the community bought a place in 2015 in Bhendi Bazaar in Mumbai at a very high cost after hectic negotiations.

“We were the owners of that place. We bought it at a very high cost. But in 2019, a third party came from Nasik and Ahmedabad, claiming that this place is the Waqf property,” apprised one of the members of the community.

He told the Prime Minister that is why the amendments were needed in the Waqf Act, adding that he (PM Modi) has the full support of the community.

“You have rightly said that development should be made keeping the next 100 years in mind, and by amending the Waqf Act, you have proved what you have said,” he told the Prime Minister.

Another member told the Prime Minister that they are a minority within the minority, and by amending the Waqf Act, the Prime Minister has taken care of the community like no other Prime Minister.

“We are a minority within a minority. And you have taken care of us. You have taken a strong step to strengthen our community,” he told the Prime Minister.

Another member of the community thanked the Prime Minister for inviting them to his (PM Modi) house and took time to listen to their concerns.

“You invited us to your home and gave us time, we thank you for this gesture. We always have a strong relationship with you,” he told the Prime Minister.

He said that by passing the Waqf Act, PM Modi has given the minority community a place in society, and the Act will only be good for the country.

“You have always believed in Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas. You have always kept the country first. I firmly believe that this bold decision (passing of Waqf Act) of yours will only take India leaps and bounds forward,” he told the Prime Minister.

He added, “We are in a minority, but your heart is too big for us. Even being busy, you gave us your precious time and listened to our concerns. We thank you for it.”

Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister for Minority Affairs, was also present at the Dawoodi Bohra community’s meeting with the Prime Minister.

He took to social media to share pictures of the meeting.

“Dawoodi Bohra Community met PM Modi to express their heartfelt gratitude for the Waqf Amendment Act, fulfilling a long-pending demand,” he wrote in a post on X.

“Their trust in PM Modi’s vision of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas was deeply moving,” he further said.

The Dawoodi Bohra community is a sect within the Shia Ismaili branch of Islam and has a significant presence in India and forty other countries of the world.

Notably, they had written to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill last year, seeking exemption from the purview of Waqf board, contending that the proposed legislation does not recognise their special status among the wider Muslim community.