Indian Muslim body launches mass movement for religious rights

NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — India’s largest Muslim personal law body has announced a nationwide mass movement to defend Islamic religious rights and constitutional protections, citing growing mob violence, demolition of Muslim properties and government policies it says are increasingly threatening the country’s Muslim minority.

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board, or AIMPLB, said the “Movement for the Protection of the Constitution and Shariah” would mobilize people across India through public meetings, protests, legal advocacy and a national campaign highlighting alleged discrimination and rights violations against Muslims.

The AIMPLB, an umbrella body representing Muslims from different Islamic schools of thought, announced the campaign Monday after months of preparation prompted by what it described as a deteriorating environment for Muslims in India.

The board said the movement would be peaceful and operate within India’s constitutional framework, arguing that protecting Shariah-based personal laws and defending constitutional guarantees of religious freedom were interconnected rather than competing objectives.

Among the principal issues driving the campaign are mob attacks and lynchings of Muslims, particularly in states governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, and the use of bulldozers to demolish Muslim homes and properties without adequate legal process.

The Muslim body also raised concerns over disputes involving mosques and Islamic shrines, alleged encroachment on Waqf properties and graveyards and government actions affecting madrasas.

Another major focus will be attempts to introduce a Uniform Civil Code, or UCC, replacing separate religion-based rules governing matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance with common laws.

Muslim organizations have opposed such measures, arguing that India’s Constitution protects the right of religious communities to follow their own personal laws.

The AIMPLB also cited arbitrary arrests of Muslim youths, changes to school curricula and efforts to require the singing of the Hindu nationalist song “Vande Mataram,” which some Muslims object to on religious grounds.

It additionally raised concerns over continuing Hindu claims to historic Muslim places of worship.

The board has sought enforcement of India’s Places of Worship Act, a 1991 law intended to preserve the religious character of places of worship as they existed when India became independent in 1947, with an exception for the disputed site in Ayodhya.

As part of the new movement, the AIMPLB plans to compile a White Paper documenting cases it considers examples of anti-Muslim discrimination, constitutional violations and human rights abuses. The document will be distributed to lawmakers, rights organizations, media outlets and government institutions.

It will also publish a legal guide explaining how Muslims can challenge allegedly unlawful demolitions and defend mosques, madrasas, graveyards and Waqf properties through the courts.

A separate declaration will address mob violence and explain victims’ legal rights and the responsibilities of governments and law enforcement agencies.

AIMPLB spokesperson S.Q.R. Ilyas said the issues went beyond Muslims and concerned “India’s constitutional identity, democratic values and shared national heritage.”

The board also criticized India’s secular opposition parties for what it called their “criminal silence” over attacks and policies affecting Muslims, accusing them of treating the community primarily as an electoral vote bank.