On October 22, 2025, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah will turn 61. While this may be the retirement age in government jobs, in politics, a person often becomes even more active after this age. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at 75, travels abroad, addresses rallies, participates in government and party meetings, and devises strategies. In such a scenario, if a leader talks about retirement, it is bound to surprise people.
However, when Amit Shah talks about retirement, it shouldn’t come as a shock. A master strategist who thinks far ahead and calculates every step, Amit Shah must have certainly decided under what circumstances and at what age he will retire. Technically, there is no such thing as retirement in politics, yet if Amit Shah dares to bring it up, it only shows why he is Amit Shah. Let’s understand the full story.
Amit Shah’s ‘Retirement Plan’
In fact, Amit Shah had organized a ‘Sahkar Samvad’ (Cooperation Dialogue) with women and cooperative workers from Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan. The new Ministry of Cooperation was formed in July 2021. Before this, the cooperative sector was often dominated by political families, which Amit Shah is now trying to reform through various measures. During this interaction, Amit Shah said that after retirement, he would study the Vedas and Upanishads and practice natural farming.
He said, “I have decided that whenever I retire, I will dedicate the rest of my life to the study of the Vedas, Upanishads, and natural farming. Natural farming is a scientific experiment with many benefits. Eating wheat grown with fertilizers leads to cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes, and thyroid issues. To stay healthy, one must eat food free of fertilizers — it eliminates the need for medicine. I tried natural farming on my own land, and the production increased by one and a half times.”
अमित शाह जी का पोस्ट-रिटायरमेंट प्लान – वेद, उपनिषद और प्राकृतिक खेती
pic.twitter.com/dEvtnLNFxZ — BJP (@BJP4India) July 9, 2025
One of the persistent issues in our country has been that only those educated abroad are considered intellectuals. We’ve been made to feel inferior about India’s ancient scriptures. In such times, it’s noteworthy that Amit Shah speaks of the Vedas and Upanishads. Don’t take his words lightly. In the 1980s, Amit Shah used to massage the feet of Vedanta scholar Swami Vamdev and learned the intricacies of Indian philosophy from him. His service to a sage is the foundation of his success!
Behind the skilled politician and strategist lies a student of Vedanta
Until now, you’ve seen Amit Shah as a political strategist: winning elections, revoking Article 370, implementing CAA, tightening the organizational screws, holding meetings with everyone from grassroots workers to Chief Ministers, and roaring in rallies. But behind this master strategist lies a devoted student of Vedanta philosophy.
He served Swami Vamdev for many days. It was Swami Vamdev, a Brahmin scholar, who advised Amit Shah to attend the Kumbh Mela. Amit Shah did so. The sage’s intention was for Shah to interact with as many saints as possible and understand Indian philosophy deeply. And that’s exactly what happened, Amit Shah obeyed his guru and attended the Kumbh.
Now, here’s something interesting. Every morning, Swami Vamdev would give his disciple a handwritten note. Shah had to take that note to a different saint each day. The note would serve as an introduction or recommendation. In this way, Amit Shah spent time daily with new saints, ate at community feasts, and collected donations (dakshina) of a few rupees whatever he was offered. He would lobby, but not for any post or financial gain, rather, for knowledge, to understand Sanatan Dharma.
And what did he do with those donation coins? He saved them up and bought a bicycle. On that bicycle, he roamed around the Kumbh, observing the many expressions of Sanatan Dharma. In the 1986 Kumbh Mela in Haridwar, where about 200,000 pilgrims were present, there was also a 21-year-old youth who was destined to become a pivotal force in shaping India’s future. That 21-year-old boy, living in Swami Vamdev’s camp, was learning from saints and mahants.
You must have heard of Vijaya Raje Scindia, the Rajmata of Gwalior and grandmother of Jyotiraditya Scindia. One day, her camp gave Amit Shah 10 rupees in Dakshina. He bought a garland for Swami Vamdev, a gesture of a disciple’s loyalty and devotion to his guru. It is this dedication that has made him the second-most powerful leader in the country today.
The courage to take big decisions comes from Sanatan literature
Chanakya, Shankaracharya, and Savarkar, these three figures deeply influence Amit Shah’s ideology. This is the foundation of study that gives him the courage and strategy to take bold decisions. In 2014, he was a strategist. By 2019, he had become a PAN-India mass leader, ensuring BJP’s victory through 250 rallies. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as well, Amit Shah proved his mettle by conducting 188 rallies.
Amidst all this, don’t forget Swami Vamdev, the one whose mentorship transformed a young man into Amit Shah. Vamdev, who was actively involved in the Ram Mandir movement alongside Mahant Avaidyanath and Paramhans Ramchandra Das.
In 1997, Swami Vamdev left his mortal body at the age of 75, but not before preparing his disciple to help build a new India. And here’s a remarkable coincidence: the same year Vamdev passed away, Amit Shah became an MLA for the first time. Perhaps it is the result of these experiences and deep study that today, Amit Shah executes bold decisions that were once considered unthinkable, and does so with full legal preparation and visible impact. Now, the turn is for the UCC (Uniform Civil Code).