Waqf Amendment Bill 2025: BJP Fights For Power To Promote Its Hindutva Agenda

A very senior journalist asked me, ‘What is the purpose of bringing the Waqf Bill now?’ He was greatly puzzled, as no election is near and the assembly elections in Bihar are almost six months away. I tried explaining to him that it would be a grave mistake to see the BJP simply as a political party. I told him that the BJP, in its earlier avatar as Jan Sangh, was created to help the RSS achieve its civilisational goal to unite Hindus. For the RSS, winning elections is secondary. Politics is only a facilitator in their great project. He was quite puzzled. I explained to him, giving the example of the Congress in pre-independence times.

The Congress then was not formed to contest elections. Its main purpose was not to capture power or participate in the government. Its main function was to fight British imperialism and free India from its clutches. The Congress was a liberation movement, and Gandhi was the commander-in-chief of that movement. Once India got freedom, it turned into a political party in the classical sense, and its decline started. Today, if the Congress is facing a terminal illness, it is due to the fact that it ceased to be a movement. It is now there to capture power and enjoy the fruits of governance. The BJP is different. It captures power to fulfil its agenda. Its ideology is Hindutva, and the purpose is to make India a Hindu Rashtra. Despite being in power, it is still a movement. That is why its language, phraseology and idioms are different. My friend shook his head in disbelief.

In my opinion the Waqf Bill has nothing to do with the welfare of the Muslim community. Their argument that the Bill has been brought in to help and empower the poor among Muslims and women of the community is a deception. It’s a camouflage. Their main goal is to contain the so-called ‘land jihad’. In their make-believe world, Hindutvavadies think that Islam is out there to turn India into an Islamic state and land jihad is one of the tools, and Muslims with a design want to grab as much land as possible, and Waqf is an instrument in that direction. In their understanding, Muslims have been expanding their presence across the country. The problem with any ideology is that it is not necessary that their epistemology should be based on historical facts, and truth should be their guiding principle.

Communism believed that capitalism created a repressive society and the state was there to serve only the affluent class, which was not the reality. Every society has rich and poor, and so did capitalism. But in order to find a cure, communism created a monstrous system which killed the basic spirit of human freedom. Communist regimes were the most repressive; they killed millions of their own people; rich and poor both were victims. Similarly, the Hindutva ideology believes in a particular worldview, has concocted a conspiracy theory that is based on the narrative that Hindus have been engaged in a 1200 year-old war with Muslims, and Hindus have no option but to win this war if the Hindu society has to survive and flourish. Like the removal of Article 370 and laws for NRC, CRR, and triple talaq, the Waqf Bill is also being used as a weapon to counter this Islamic threat and win this war. The Waqf bill is an ideological push to consolidate its gains achieved in the last ten years under the Modi regime and build a powerful Hindutva castle for the future. Political gains are only a byproduct.

Certainly, the Waqf Bill has also been a strategic political move. It not only serves its ideological purpose but also helps them politically. The BJP, wisened by history, has not declared a full-fledged war on its enemies; it believes that a low-intensity war is more beneficial and keeps the communal pot boiling. The party has mastered the art of polarisation on religious lines. The BJP has realised that the jolt that it faced in the 2024 general election is real and a large section of Hindus, especially Dalits and most backwards among OBCs, are no longer their core voters, which helped the party get 303 in 2019. To lure that section of Hindus to the party fold, they need to be constantly reminded of their Hindu-ness and also who their permanent enemies are. Since Waqf is an important feature of Islam, Muslims are angry and have decided to hit the streets to register their protest. The BJP and the RSS believe that it will help the BJP polarise Hindus if Muslims take the agitational route in large numbers over a longer period.

Since 2024, it is believed that unlike 2014 and 2019, the Modi government is not very strong, as it does not have a majority of its own; for its survival, it is dependent on secular allies who cater to Muslim votes, like the TDP, JDU, LJP and RLD. Through the Waqf Bill, the BJP has tested the strength of their support. Despite facing internal trouble from their Muslim leaders, the JDU, LJP and RLD continued with their support for the government. This is a great political victory. This has further proved that the BJP’s allies are not there for ideological reasons but for power.

In the end, the BJP and the RSS are the real gainers. They have emerged stronger. If the RSS has gained more heft ideologically, then the BJP has manoeuvred more space politically vis-a-vis the allies. It is a win-win situation for the BJP.

The writer is Co-Founder, SatyaHindi.com, and author of Hindu Rashtra. He tweets at @ashutosh83B