Opinion | Why PM Modi’s Outreach To The Matua Community Matters |
On 20 December 2025, in his virtual address to a large gathering in West Bengal’s Nadia district, a heartland of the Matua community, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid warm tributes to the community’s spiritual icons—Harichand Thakur, Guruchand Thakur, and Baro Maa—praising their lifelong work for social welfare and drawing parallels with Vaishnavite traditions of devotion and equality. He once again carefully highlighted how the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has brought dignity and security to Matua families, while promising even greater support if the BJP forms the next government in Bengal.
The timing of PM Modi’s speech was significant: it came at a moment when many in the community were anxious about the ongoing 2025 Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, fearing that a lack of proper documents could lead to disenfranchisement. The trust deficit of the community in the state government has made them particularly vulnerable. PM Modi’s words offered timely reassurance, reinforcing his sustained efforts to build a deep connect with this historically wronged community.
The Matua community, primarily comprising members of the Namasudra caste (formerly known as Chandala), is a Hindu sect founded in the 19th century in East Bengal (now Bangladesh) by Harichand Thakur (1812–1878) and further developed by his son Guruchand Thakur (1846-1937). The Matua Mahasangha emphasises devotion to a formless god, rejection of caste hierarchies, and social upliftment through education and self-respect, attracting followers from marginalised Dalit groups in rural Bengal. Today, estimates of their population in West Bengal vary, with conservative figures around 3-4 million based on 2011 Census data for........