Facing Heat from Allies on Waqf Act, BJP Plans Nationwide Outreach to Defend Law as Social Justice Initiative

With NDA allies Janata Dal (United), Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) under pressure following the passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, the BJP is stepping in to manage the fallout. As several leaders from the JD(U) and RLD have resigned in protest, the BJP has decided to launch a comprehensive public outreach campaign to defend the legislation and frame it as a progressive step aimed at empowering marginalised sections—especially Pasmanda Muslims and women from minority communities.

The law, currently being challenged in the Supreme Court, has stirred controversy across party lines. In response, BJP leaders say the party will present it not just as legal reform, but as a commitment to “appeasement-free genuine secularism” rooted in social justice. The party’s messaging will focus on transparency in the management of Waqf properties and equitable representation in Waqf Boards, particularly for backward Muslims and women—who BJP claims are being included meaningfully for the first time.

This campaign comes ahead of a busy election calendar. Bihar heads to the polls later this year, followed by crucial contests in West Bengal and Kerala in 2026—states where Muslim voters are politically significant and where the BJP hopes to make deeper inroads.

To spearhead the campaign, the BJP has constituted a coordination committee led by Rajya Sabha MP and senior leader from Uttar Pradesh, Dr. Radha Mohan Das Agrawal. The team also includes BJP Minority Morcha president Jamal Siddiqui; national secretary Anil Antony, the son of veteran Congress leader A.K. Antony; and general secretary Dushyant Gautam, a Dalit face in the party. The diverse composition of the committee appears calibrated to amplify the BJP’s twin messages of inclusion and social justice.

The committee will travel across the country, holding public meetings, engaging with community leaders, and addressing press conferences. Additionally, FAQ brochures explaining the law, its constitutional standing, and its implications will be distributed in multiple languages—including Urdu—to ensure wider reach and understanding.

At a strategy meeting attended by BJP president and Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda and Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, the party finalised its core narrative: that the amended law is not just constitutional, but essential for empowering disadvantaged Muslims and democratizing the management of Waqf assets. Nadda reportedly told leaders that Opposition parties were misleading Muslims for political gain and resisting reforms that could benefit the poorest sections. Rijiju is said to have defended the inclusion of non-Muslims in the Waqf Council and Boards, clarifying that the role is administrative and not religious, and thus aligns with secular principles.

Dr. Agrawal, who had served on the Joint Parliamentary Committee for the Bill, played a pivotal role in shaping its final draft. He had proposed an amendment allowing courts to accept late registrations from Waqf boards, provided a justification affidavit was filed. During the Rajya Sabha debate, he notably quoted from the Quran to support the amendments, a move that drew both criticism and curiosity from Opposition members, some of whom mocked him as a “Maulana.”

A four-time MLA and a paediatrician by profession, Agrawal vacated his Gorakhpur City Assembly seat in 2022 to allow Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to contest. He remains a prominent political figure in Uttar Pradesh.

Jamal Siddiqui, who will lead outreach efforts in Punjab, Haryana, and Jammu & Kashmir, emphasized that the campaign will last at least a month and focus on dispelling misinformation. Dushyant Gautam, representing the social justice plank, and Anil Antony, who joined BJP from Congress in 2023, will bring their respective strengths to the campaign—particularly in connecting with Dalit and Christian communities in BJP’s electoral strategy.

As the BJP seeks to neutralize political damage and reshape the narrative around the Waqf amendment, the campaign is expected to serve as both damage control and groundwork for the party’s broader push for inclusivity ahead of upcoming elections.