Modi Government Ignoring Ambedkar’s & Patel’s Advice; Waqf Act Unconstitutional and Void Ab Initio

Modi government ignoring Ambedkar's & Patel's advice; Waqf Act unconstitutional and void ab initio: Former President, Supreme Court Bar Association, Dushyant Dave, to Karan Thapar for The Wire.

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One of India’s boldest and most outspoken leading Supreme Court lawyers says that the Modi government over the last 10 years has repeatedly and blatantly ignored and breached the advice of B. R. Ambedkar and Sardar Patel, two men it professes to admire, respect and treat as icons. After pointing out where this has happened, Dushyant Dave goes on to argue that the Waqf Act is unconstitutional as well as being bad in law and in breach of Indian jurisprudence and is, therefore, liable to be declared void ab initio under Article 13 of the Constitution.



The advice from Ambedkar that Dushyant Dave believes the Modi government has ignored over the last 10 years is from December 2, 1948 when he said: “No government can exercise its power in such a manner as to provoke the Muslim community to rise in rebellion. I think it would be a mad government if it did so.”



The second advice from Ambedkar the Modi government has ignored is from November 4, 1948 when he spoke about his fears if the minorities rebel. He said: “I would like to say two things. One is that minorities are an explosive force which, if it erupts, can blow up the whole fabric of the state. The history of Europe bears ample and appalling testimony to this fact. The other is that the minorities in India have agreed to place their existence in the hands of the majority.”



The advice from Sardar Patel which the government has ignored is what he said on May 25, 1949: “It is for us who happen to be in a majority to think about what the minorities feel, and how we in their position would feel if we were treated in the manner in which they are treated.”



Speaking about the Waqf Act, Mr. Dave says: “The Waqf (Amendment) Act 2025, strikes at the root of fundamental rights in Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution.”



He argues that as a result the Supreme Court should deem the Waqf Act to be void ab initio under Article 13 of the Constitution.



I will stop there. I’m only giving you the main points he’s made. Please see the interview to understand the full argument presented by Mr. Dave.