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Though poverty is a global phenomenon, its concentration in India is greater than any other country. According to World Bank data, almost 30% of the world-s extreme poor were living in India in 2011. As a religious group, Muslims in India are trapped in the incidence of poverty more than other communities except Buddhists. In aggregate terms, one in every three Muslims lives below poverty line in India. Muslims in India are the second largest majority after Hindus. The data on the socio-economic status of Muslims reveals that the community lags behind Hindus in almost all areas including education, government jobs and financial inclusion. Poverty is one of the main reasons for the pathetic condition of the community in the country. As per the available data, 21.7 % of Muslims living in rural areas are in poverty. The incident of poverty is more acute among the Muslims living in urban areas, as the percentage of poor Muslims in urban areas stands at a staggering 33.7%. The average of combined Muslim population below poverty line in rural and urban areas stood at 25.8% by 2009-2010. As a whole, along with being the second largest majority in India, Muslims also constitute the second largest religious group in poverty after Buddhists. This abject condition of the community can be remedied to a great extent if along with other governmental policies, the resources of Waqf (Islamic charitable endowments) are deployed properly with the objective of poverty mitigation in the community. India hosts a massive size and amount of Waqf. There are approximately 4.9 lakh (490,000) registered Waqf properties in the country. The total area that Waqf properties of the country cover is more than six hundred thousand acres. The current market value of all Waqf properties in the country are estimated to be worth more than 1.2 trillion Indian Rupees. According to the some estimates if these properties are put to efficient and marketable use they can generate at least a minimum return of ten per cent. Thus, the role of Waqf institution can be critically important in reducing the poverty of particularly Muslim community. However, partially due to lack of a robust governance structure and also due to rigidity of approach and misapplication, the institution of Waqf remains either static or unresponsive towards the poverty of the community. This paper examines the potential relationship of Waqf and poverty reduction among the Indian Muslims followed by a critical analysis of the religious as well as legal governance structures of Waqf. The paper finds that the rate of poverty among the Muslims in India can be substantially reduced if the available resources of Waqf are deployed through proper planning and with efficiency. The paper is based on qualitative research paradigm and it adopts socio-legal research methodology for the analysis of the available literature. The paper concludes with some critical policy recommendations which may help to provide a road-map for t