The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has made Hindu religious issues an important part of its political strategy. The construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya gave the party a big boost, but it did not bring the expected benefits in the Lok Sabha elections. Despite this, the BJP is not ready to give up these issues.
Now, with the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections in mind, the party is vigorously raising the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi and Shahi Idgah Masjid dispute in Mathura. This issue not only inflames Hindu sentiments, but can also prove politically beneficial for the BJP.
The Mathura dispute began with the Hindu side, which claimed that Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb had demolished the Keshavdev temple in the 17th century and built the Shahi Idgah Masjid on that site. This place is known as the birthplace of Lord Krishna. Hindu organizations had filed appeals in the courts, demanding the removal of the mosque and the construction of the temple. The Allahabad High Court had started hearing 18 such appeals in 2024, which has given new life to the dispute. The BJP has not officially made it an election issue, but party leaders like Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya have hinted about it by tweeting. They say that after Ayodhya and Kashi, Mathura will also come up.
The BJP is raising this issue because it is a strong weapon to rally Hindu voters in states like Uttar Pradesh. Like Ayodhya, it is also associated with the ideology of ‘Hindutva’, with which the party encourages its cadre. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is also not silent; it links it with its saffron ideology. Religious leaders like Dhirendra Shastri of Bageshwar Dham have also gone to Mathura and said that Ram has taken over, now it is Krishna’s turn. He also talked about playing Vande Mataram in temples, which is associated with patriotism. The BJP has adopted this by sharing his interview on its social media. Dhirendra Shastri will undertake a foot march from Delhi to Mathura-Vrindavan from November 7 to November 16, in which saints and saints will also be present. This march will spread the issue at the grassroots level and strengthen Hindu unity.
This issue will have several political advantages for the BJP. First, it will become a weapon to encircle opposition parties like the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the BSP, which are dependent on the Muslim vote bank. The BJP will polarise the Hindu vote in its favour, especially in UP, where it has 80 Lok Sabha seats. Second, it will connect the party with Hindu voters at the national level, which had dwindled in the 2024 elections. Third, the BJP will get new support by associating with religious leaders like Baba Shastri who attract Hindu youth. Fourth, the issue will drag on with court cases, which will keep the emotions alive till the elections. But this will increase communal tension.
Ultimately, this strategy for the BJP could pave the way for a comeback in the UP assembly elections. Party leaders say it is linked to cadre sentiment and there will be a big wave after the elections. But it is also true that such issues create divisions among the people, which can be detrimental to the party in the long run.
