The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) has criticized the direct tax code (DTC) bill introduced in Parliament and called upon all religious institutions to join hands in protest against it.

On Sunday AIMPLB members, who are meeting in Ujjain, said tax exemptions currently available to religious institutions under the Income Tax Act would be discontinued once the DTC comes into effect.

AIMPLB national spokesperson Muhammad Abdul Rahim Quraishi told a press conference that tax reliefs and concessions to religious bodies should continue. He appealed to all religious institutions — including Hindu, Christian and Sikh — to come forward and demand for the continuation of the current tax benefits.

Quraishi also said the government should release Muslim youths jailed on suspicion of involvement in terrorist activities and against whom charge-sheets had not been filed for the past several years. He refused to comment on questions related to the Students Islamic Movement of India.