The Ramayana has been used for political ends through the belief in Rama himself. If he is considered the national leader of Ayodhya then it is logical that all of the politics of the area will be based around the belief in him (Udayakumar 12). The belief in the Ramayana itself is not problematic, but when it comes to mandating that the Ramayana be looked at as a factual, historical resource without regard for other viewpoints or opinions, it becomes controversial (Jain). Sharma argues that if the Quran and Bible are being used as a historical reference, then there is no reason to exclude the Ramayana; however, we must acknowledge that it is dangerous to use religious texts as factual, historical references without examining the biases and storytelling incorporated into those works (Jain). It is problematic to regard the Ramayana as a political text because it erases political neutrality and promotes a bias from which it is impossible to escape.
There is not as large of a divide between Muslims and Hindus as Hindus perceive there to be. There are Muslims who have read and studied the Ramayana enough to be decorated scholars of the Ramayana which contrasts the view that Muslims and those of other religions are not educated on those teachings (Narayanan 277). In fact, Ismail said that in every generation there has been at least one Muslim who was an authority on this topic (Narayanan 279).