“Where have we reached in the name of religion, what have we reduced religion to is tragic”
– Supreme Court of India, 2022-2023
A new normal prevails in #NewIndia, where elected Members of Legislative Assemblies, belonging to the party that controls the union government, are openly supported extra-judicial killings, now even threatening of persons who speak against majoritarianism. Last week, Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, a MLA belonging to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in the Bijapur constituency of Karnataka recently said that “If you speak about our faith or about India, then you will be shot. ” this open threat was issued by the said MLA as he was speaking about the murder of Atique Ahmed in Uttar Pradesh, saying that this same method will be used in Karnataka too, where decision will be taken on the road. His state goes to the polls on May 10.
The video can be viewed here:
“If you speak about our faith or about #India/#Hindus. Then you will be shot” #BJP MLA #BasanagoudaPatilYatnal at #Vijayapura while speaking on how #AtiqueAhmad was dealt in #UttarPradesh.
Yatnal implied-in #Karnataka 2 decision wil be taken on road. No jail. Encounters on road. pic.twitter.com/Yy0gIjlkjl — Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) May 1, 2023
Hate speech has been a dark spot on Indian democracy for decades, but the scale of the problem has accelerated sharply in recent years, with the Indian polity being regularly bombarded with hateful speech and polarising content. This development has gone hand in hand with the rise and consolidation of the current regime at the centre since 2014 with even cabinet ministers and officials committing offences of hate bartering, with impunity.
Even as these serious issues were agitated before the Supreme Court (SC) by citizens and activists leading to a string of strictures and guidelines (the latest) being issued by the Supreme Court to curb hate speeches made by political and religious leaders, the events and speeches by far right outfits thriving on current political patronage have redoubled, being consistently reported from various parts of India. Notably, most of this hate content (even those reported below) contains open calls to violence and are shocking in the violent and extreme language they use, transgressing the lawful line and distinction of mere utterances to actually advocate calls for ethnic cleansing. The vitriolic tone used in these particular instances of speech is the most relevant, as it aims to not only stigmatise or isolate the minorities (especially the largest majority in India, Muslims) but are so extreme that they amount to exhortations to physical harm and violence.
In the month of April 2023 too, Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) has collated a list of such events where hate speeches had been given. In the list provided below, a few names of repeat offenders are observed, while some new emergent trainee names to the hate bandwagon are also seen. The hate factory is clearly constantly grooming newer and newer entrants into their cynical fold. The analysis below looks at the offences and offenders, classified by region state/district.
- Location: Ghagwal, Samba, Jammu (May 2, 2023)
Far-right group Antarashtriya Hindu Parishad (AHP) –of which “veteran” Dr Praveen Togadia is a prominent voice– organised a hate event demonizing Muslims. The leader could be heard urging his Hindu audience to “raise arms against Muslims, and lead a battle against them”, as Hindu lords have in the past against “demons.”
The speech:
“Can our DNA and the DNA of the Muslims be one? No. So all these people who are saying that we have the same DNA, should we make them understand this or not? Who will tell these people? (The crowd shouts- we will). Then you need to get ready and raise your swords. The time is here, the battle will take place now. These battles are not new, they happened before too don’t your remember? Those who are Veer will not be killed.”
“Those who do not consider Mother India as their mother, can that person be considered out brother? (The crowd shouts- no) Those who do not consider cows as their mother, can that person be considered out brother? (The crowd shouts- no) Then who gave birth to this slogan that Hindu Muslim Sikhs and Christians are brothers?”
“These people are making a fooling of us while calling us brothers. They are literally cutting us up and eating us, and you people are considering them brothers. Till when are you going to let this happen? We used to rule this world, we used to be referred to as Chhakravarti Samrat. No one was greater than us. But look at us now, we have to struggle in even Ghagwal, we have to struggle to even protect our own mother cows now.”
“On one side there is God, on the other side there are demons. Even in Satyug, there used to be God and Goddesses, Lord Shiva used to be there, but on the other hand there were demons, such as Bhasmasura. Even demons used to worships gods and get gifts. These people also read Namaz and remember their Gods. They read Namaz every day 5 times, get together every Friday while we people only go to temples sometimes.”
“Now, all Gods are one. Just like demons, these people also keep worshipping Gods and get their rewards. You know, after rewarding Bhasmasura, our Lord Shiv had to hide. After he hid, he had to then battle against the demon, and even Lord Vishnu had to come, disillusion the demon, and then kill him.”
“There are more such examples- take one of Gokul where on one side there was Lord Krishna, and on the other side, there was Kanasa. Was there a battle then or no? There were Pandavas on one side and Kauravs on the other. These battles are not new, many died too. Another battle example is the battle between Ram and Raavan. Raavan was so learned too, but he was defeated by Lord Ram.”
“In all these battles the Lords and Gods had to struggle too, they were not sleeping, unlike us. I keep on thinking how fortunate we were that we got to sleep. We stay at our homes, with our children and wives. But the Gods did not get to sleep and rest like us, and that is why they are Gods. That is why we worship them and clap for them. Gods lead disciplined lives.”
“Since Satyug, in every era there have been struggles, then why do you think there will not be some struggle in Kalyug. In Kaluyug, there needs to be a bigger struggle because in every house there is a Raanvan, even inside us there is a Raavan. That is why I am saying that “Sangharsh hi jeevanhai(Struggle is life)”
“What is the use of living like a corpse? All the people present here are actually alive, they have the enthusiasm to make change and to actually do something for their country, their religion and their society, and for the protection of their cultures and traditions. Only Gods can think like this.”
“This sentiment of the serving the nation, present inside all of you, is motivating all of us to do something of the kind that leaves a mark, so that when we depart the world, the people left behind remember us. They should remember that there were these people on Earth who did something for their country. For this, you should all remember this- Struggle is life.”
The video can be viewed here:
Location: Ghagwal, Samba, Jammu
Far-right group AntarRashtriya Hindu Parishad (AHP) organized a hate event demonizing Muslims. “Pick up the swords……The war is upon us,” said the AHP leader. pic.twitter.com/lNty1ejdtW — HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) May 2, 2023
- Location: Loni, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh (May 2, 2023)
Serial offender, Suresh Chavhankeof Sudarshan TV fame, made stigmatising, communal remarks and targeted the Muslim community. He indulged in his patterned fear-mongering by raising the bogey of “Muslim population growth” and even went as far as to say that “they”live off Hindu taxpayers’ money!
The speech:
“Even after having Modi is there in Delhi and Yogi is there in Lucknow, UP, and even after having a population of 100 crores, if the ‘Ram Shobha Yatra’ cannot be taken out in 2023, do you think if the same will be possible in 2025? What will happen after 75 year or 100 years?”
“Even though we all might not be there, but our next generations will be. Where will they stay? Or do you want to run to Pakistan or Bangladesh? Now even both these countries are not an option, do you want to go to the ocean and die there? If you are anyway going to die by going into the option, one should rather die by fighting with these traitors, atleast our coming generations will be safe.”
“99.9% tax is paid by Hindus, and the ones who are not paying any tax and enjoying on our tax have 4 wives and 44 children. We Hindus have no problem with feeding animals, we Hindus feed everyone. But when we keep on feeding them and they keep on growing, it will later raise a question on us.”
The video can be viewed here:
Location: Loni, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh
Hatemonger Suresh Chavhanke made communal remarks and targeted minorities. He indulged in fear-mongering by raising the bogey of Muslim population growth and said they live off Hindu taxpayers’ money. pic.twitter.com/6S9TbjmbPv — HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) May 2, 2023
- Location: Dharangaon, Jalgaon, Maharashtra (May 1, 2023)
Communal speeches delivered at Hindu Rashtra Jagruti Sabha organized by Hindu Janjagruti Samiti (HJS). At this event, the speakers peddled various conspiracy theories to generate hate towards Muslims and called for establishing a Hindu nation.
Woman speaker:
“It’s time for women to awaken their patriotism. Every day there are crimes against women (rape etc) and Hindu women are being slaughtered in love jihad. In this country crimes against women are increasing…Every day at least 84 rapes on women. Today everyone should learn self defense. Hindus are not safe. Until when will we bear with this? Instead of dying at their hands, it is time to kill these love jihadis. Because it our right under the law. Everyday are we supposed to read such news? Somewhere Hindu girl was cut into 35 pieces, somewhere else she was cut into 50 pieces. Now the news needs to change that Hindu women avenged their culprits, their rapists. There is a right to self defense and we should act on it.”
Man speaker:
“We have seen great kings rule on this land but we are getting to see secularism. We have seen Hindus Rashtra in the past and this is not an unnatural demand. Everyone is born a Hindu, it is nature, they get converted later. In Ayodhya temple is going to be constructed after many years and several people, including lawyers have sacrificed a lot for that. In India crores have the faith that Ram was born in Ayodhya. “Ram mandir jhakihai Kashi Mathura bakihai” slogans are raised because even where Krishna was born, there are illegal structures.”
The video can be viewed here:
Location: Dharangaon, Jalgaon, Maharashtra
Communal speeches delivered at Hindu Rashtra Jagruti Sabha organized by Hindu Janjagruti Samiti (HJS). Speakers peddled various conspiracy theories to generate hate towards Muslims and called for establishing a Hindu nation. pic.twitter.com/JAw5rsiX78 — HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) May 1, 2023
- Location: Mumbra, Thane, Maharashtra (April 30, 2023)
Sakal Hindu Samaj organized another hate-filled Hindu JanjagaranDharmsabha in Mumbra district of Thane. Many speakers were seen participating in the said event, espousing a hard, right-wing, exclusionist ideology, and can be seen delivering incendiary and inciteful speeches through which they had targeted the Muslim community of our country. A total of five speakers were heard delivering anti-Muslim speeches, videos of which have gone “viral” and reached hundreds of thousands. The speakers have made misinformed and offensive claims against the minority community, its history and their culture.
Speaker- Sadhvi Saraswati
In her speech, Sadhvi Saraswati targeted Muslims, pitched for keeping swords & committing violence in the name of religion.She too demonised Muslims, referred to Asaduddin Owaisi, president of AIMIM, MP of Hyderabad as “Geedad (Jackal)”, with the aim of provoking her audience. She even cited misinformed examples to provoke Hindus to hurt the religious sentiments of the Muslim community, by forcing them to say VandeMataram and applying a tilak on their head.
The speech:
“In the name of religion, even if you have to kill for it or die for it, do not take a step back. Do buy a swords for Rs. 1000 and keep it at home, in case if anyone who follows any other religion and is a be-dharmieven dares to look at you. This land belong to Goddess Kali and Goddess Chandi, the one who killed the demon Mahishasur. When it is needed, Kali takes up the role of feeding everyone, but when she is confronted with demons, she takes on the role of her killer as Chandi. I want to see that thing in you where you destroy the ones when it is needed.”
“You can buy a car after 2 years too. But you should not allow anyone who is a be-dharmi to buy a land that belonged to your ancestors, so that they cannot commit Land-Jihad. You should not let any be-dharmi play or interfere with your religion. Our history tells us that more than 31,000 temples have been destroyed by them, and even our holy books were burnt by them. In Nalanda, our books kept burning for 6 months.”
“Our religion and our traditions have always been wronged. Why? This is all because of some be-dharmipeople. Our Hindu religion is so great that these irrelevant people can do no harm to it. Some of these people, these traitors, hurt our religion by fooling us into thinking that they were our partners.”
“Only an axe can cut a log of wood, but the axe cannot do that without having the wood as a part of it. Similarly, only a Hindu can hurt a Hindu. These people have the secularism fever. They say that my brother Abdul is celebrating the festival of Eid today, and I should go over to his house to eat seviyaan(a sweet dish), or else Abdul will be angry with me. I want to ask these people to tell Abdul to come and celebrate Ram Navami, Hanuman Jayatni with them, for Abdul to bring their child dressed as Ram in saffron clothes and a tilak on his head. They should ask Abdul to put the saffron flag, say Bharat Mata ki jai and VandeMataram.”
“That Abdul is a hardcore Muslim, but only we have the fever of secularism. There is this Jackal in Hyderabad, I don’t even want to take his name as he is an impure man (referring to Asaduddin Owaisi, president of AIMIM, MP of Hyderabad). He says that now the power is with Yogi and Modi, but what will you do after that? But I am saying that Modi will be there for 5 more years, and then after him, there will be Yogi ji as Prime minister for the next 15 years.”
“On this land, Lord Ram took birth and then Ram-Rajya was established, after Chanakya came here, the great ChandraguptMorya was established, and only after Guru Ram Das came here could we establish Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. India has always had great saints, and great rulers like Yogi and Modi. These rulers and saints will keep on coming. The jackal’s dream will only remain dreams, in India, only a Hindutva-wadi will sit and rule from now onwards. The video can be viewed here:
Location: Mumbra, Thane, Maharashtra
Sakal Hindu Samaj organized another hate-filled Hindu Janjagaran Dharmsabha. In her speech, Sadhvi Saraswati targeted Muslims, pitched for keeping swords & committing violence in the name of religion. Thread/ pic.twitter.com/guGhEwtH8L — HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) May 1, 2023
Speaker- Bharatanand Saraswati Maharaj
Saraswati Maharaj also targeted Muslims, used anti-Muslim slurs and accused them of spreading COVID. He urged Hindus to keep weapons, threatened Kar Seva against a graveyard in Mumbra, and pitched for declaring India a Hindu nation.
The speech:
“Till now, our Modi ji is there in the centre as Prime Minister. But once Yogi ji comes, you won’t even be able to find Mughal on Google. I want to warnmy Hindu sisters that they should keep a weapon in their purse for their own protection. For cow protection, women protection, country protection and protection of our religion, keeping a weapon for these purposes is not a crime. Keep weapons on yourself.”
“If that weapon is with you, no m***a (anti-Muslim slur) will not be able to even look at you with some ulterior intentions. I want to urge the government that till you make a law prohibiting love-jihad, allow our women, who are our sisters, daughters and mothers, to keep weapons with them.”
“We want to declare India as a Hindu Rashtra, and all the places of religious importance to us, such as Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanvapi issue which is still ongoing, it temple will be freed too. The birth place of Lord Krishna- Mathura, that will be freed too. Here in Mumbra, over the hills where these graves are present, this used to be the place where our Mahadev stayed, we will free this too.”
“If the forest department does not issue some notification, then we will repeat the karseva that we have done in the past. We all, along with our saints and Hindu brothers will ourselves go and free this pure land that belongs to us.”
“These people will not form a connection with Ram, but will rather belong with Babar, these are the illegal children of Babar and Aurangzeb. If you remain this peaceful and quiet, how will we protect our religion and country?”
“A few days ago, this movie called ‘The Kerala Story’ has come, and it says that 32000 women have been trapped in Love-Jihad. This statistic is an old statistic. Watch this movie and show us some solidarity.”
“Even when Hindus are present in majority in this country, they speak about our holy places, our festivals, and our gods, but they are not charged under law. Only Hindu saints, Hindu organisation and Hindu leaders are booked under law by the government. Even during lockdown, when there was a curfew and masks and vaccines were made compulsory. Even then these people had openly said that they will not get the vaccine, not wear the mask, and not abide by the curfew.”
“In Malegaon, these people and Mulanas used to roam around freely at night. In Nizamuddin, about a 1000 of these people had spread corona, and yet there had no action. I want to ask the government as to why there has been so much hypocrisy?”
“After 10 pm, the mikes of the kirtan are turned off as mikes and loudspeakers are not allowed to be used beyond 10 pm. But their loudspeakers are turned on all day and all night. The rules are only limited to the Hindu community. Even “Hum do Humare do” are also limited to Hindus. For them, it is “Hum paanch humare pachees”.
The video can be viewed here:
Bharatanand Saraswati Maharaj also targeted Muslims and accused them of spreading COVID. He urged Hindus to keep weapons, threatened Kar Seva against a graveyard in Mumbra, and pitched for declaring India a Hindu nation. pic.twitter.com/lFb8SQDICa
— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) May 1, 2023
Speaker- Muni Nilesh Chandra Maharaj
The speech:
“What was with Gandhi ji? Gandhi ji only loved the stars and the moon, and the result of this was the partition of India. If Godse hadn’t shot Mahatma Gandhi in his chest, Hindus would have been praying Namaz in Mecca and Medina.”
“Patthar ke saath Patthar banna ho, Hindu Samaaj ko bachana hai toh Kattar banna hoga(you have to behave like a stone when surrounded by stones. Similarly, to save our religion, we have to become hard core extremists now)”
“If we do not become extremists like them, then in the coming times, we will be given a choice to either let go of our religion and accept Islam, or to have our heads be cut off from our body”
The video can be viewed here:
“If Godse hadn’t shot Mahatma Gandhi in his chest, Hindus would have been praying in Mecca,” said Muni Nilesh Chandra Maharaj pic.twitter.com/wtIbW9ufIp
— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) May 1, 2023
Speaker- Unknown
“The objective behind this meeting is to have laws prohibiting Love Jihad, Land Jihad and conversion. This country is known by its Hindu and it is the Hindus that make India proud. Our fight is also for Hindu rights, and to protect our religion. All those who represent our country is Hindu. The other name for our Bharat (India) is Hindu.”
Speaker- Unknown
“We need to have the strictest laws for prohibiting Love Jihad, Land Jihad and conversion. There is already a law prohibiting cow slaughter, but we need to make sure they get implemented fully.”
The video can be viewed here:
Two other far-right speakers peddled conspiracy theories like “love jihad” & “land jihad” to cause a divide among communities. pic.twitter.com/mxC9b1qDIl
— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) May 1, 2023
- Location- Kerpani, Narsinghpur, Madhya Pradesh (April 30, 2023)
Another serial anti-Muslim hate speaker, far-right leader T Raja Singh weaponised the history of Madhya Pradesh to provoke his audience against the Muslim community.
The speech:
“Never get scared in your life, whoever gets sacred, they die. Those who are the enemies of the country, enemies of our Religion, they should be scared of us.”
“Earlier, the Nizam used to rule the state of Telangana, and they used to enjoy torturing us with the Britishers. Now Telangana has become a state, but when it used to be a part of Andhra Pradesh. In the state of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra, wherever we used to have our farmlands, they used to capture it and kill the farmers. Whoever used to raise slogans for the independence of India, they used to hang them or murder them.”
“Even after such an environment existed for us, we never got scared. We have planned to retaliate to the tactics of the Nizams. For that, we organised an army of our own. The Nizam too had an army that used to attack Hindu majority regions, commit theft and murders of the Hindus. They used to target Hindu areas, and then put their flags after having attacked every Hindu there. Except for the ones who agreed to get converted, everyone else was killed.”
“They had captured everything. And then, the army with our ancestors from Madhya Pradesh went and defeated them. Even the Nizams knew that these people have come from that land where they were not taught how to lose. They tried to defeat our army many times. But I feel proud to say that every man, woman, and every children, used to raise arms at that time in order to kill the Nizams army.”
“These people used to protect themselves and the others. At that time, the Arya Samaj had contributed greatly to our battle. The Arya Samaji of Telangana used to give training on how to raise weapons against the Nizams.”
“We carry the blood of great people like you. Even today, mad dogs like Owaisi roam the streets of Hyderabad. These people say that if they are given 15 mins, they will destroy every Hindu in Telangana. These two mad brothers used to say this, and to them, Raja Singh, who carry the blood of those great men, give a benefitting reply.”
“When we got to know about this family, their history, their predecessors, we got worried after knowing that these people are ours sons. Their ancestors were Tulsi Ram. These people had converted, and had migrated to Hyderabad from Latur in Maharashtra where they used to drive rickshaws.”
“And today, they live in our country, they say wrong things about our Hindus. But let me tell you, these people think 10 times before saying anything about us. They think that if they will say something, Raja Singh will say more things. They had put me in jail for 77 days thinking that I will be scared, but they don’t know that jail is my farm house.”
The video can be viewed here:
Location: Kerpani, Narsinghpur, Madhya Pradesh
Far-right leader T Raja Singh weaponizes history to target Muslims. pic.twitter.com/2uIkPNhvcm — HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) April 30, 2023
- Medium- R1. Bharat News (April 28, 2023)
Aniruddhacharya Maharaj, another saffron clad “saint” called for establishing Hindu Rashtra, urges his followers to wear Dhoti and Kurta from now onwards so that the culture of India can change even before it is declared a Hindu nation.
The speech:
“How many of you want to establish an undivided Hindu Nation? Then tell me one thing, wearing pants and shirts, is this the tradition of India or a western concept? What do you think is the traditional clothing of India? Its Dhoti and Kurta. Try to wear dhoti and kurta atleast once in a week.”
“Today our culture is dying because we have left our customs and culture behind. Tell me who all will go to the market wearing dhoti kurta? Those Muslim men do not feel shy while wearing their caps, then why do you all feel shy while applying a tilak on your head? Learn how to apply a tilak, it is very important.”
“Instead of good morning and good afternoon, say Jai Shri Narayan to each other or Jai shri Sita Ram. We need to start bringing in these changes so that we can change this country.”
The video can be viewed here:
Aniruddhacharya Maharaj calls for establishing Hindu Rashtra, urges his followers to wear Dhoti and Kurta. pic.twitter.com/yqVStFroyS
— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) April 28, 2023
- Location: New Delhi (April 28, 2023)
Hindu far-right leader Pravin Togadia indulged in fear-mongering by promoting the conspiracy theory that Muslims are working towards replacing the Hindu population and establishing a Muslim nation in the next few decades.
The speech:
“The way in which the Hindu population of India is decreasing and the Muslim population is increasing, in the next 40-50 years, the Muslim population will reach 35-40%. After that, India will be a Muslim nation, and the Mughal rule will return.”
The video can be viewed here:
Location: New Delhi
Hindu far-right leader Pravin Togadia indulges in fear-mongering by promoting the conspiracy theory that Muslims are working towards replacing the Hindu population and establishing a Muslim nation in the next few decades. pic.twitter.com/SxWCYv8DSu — HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) April 28, 2023
- Location- Unknown (April 28, 2023)
“I announce Any Hindu boy who marries a Muslim girl, he will get 250000 rupees from “Akhil Hindu Yuva Morcha”, and all his needs will be fulfilled.”
The speech:
“Any boy belonging to the Hindu community, be it a Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaisya, or a Shudra, of they marry a Muslim girl, they can go to any district office of “Akhil Hindu Yuva Morcha” can collect a check of 2.5 Lakhs. They will also be provided security for 6 months, along with food and shelter by the Akhil Hindu Yuva Morcha.”
The video can be viewed here:
“I announce Any Hindu boy who marries a Muslim girl, he will get 250000 rupees from “Akhil Hindu Yuva Morcha”, and all his needs will be fulfilled.”#Hindutva #HateSpeech pic.twitter.com/ildgSCI6kX
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) April 28, 2023
- Location: New Delhi (April 27, 2023)
Hate monger Suresh Chavhanke again delivered a communal speech targeting Muslims, called for the declaring of India into a Hindu nation, and even targeted the judiciary at an event organized for Shankaracharya Nischalananda Saraswati.
The speech:
“75 years after Independence, in the presence of one of the biggest gurus of Hindus, we have to demand for the declaration of India as a Hindu nation, even this is the biggest act of slavery according to me. Shankaracharya is not only our religious guru, but is the biggest expert of physics in the world.”
“For the greater happiness of human beings, our saints are required to give their time, and they are giving their time. But unfortunately, in this 75th year, and during this ‘Amrit Kaal’, we are being forced to demand for the declaration of India as a Hindu nation. From the time given to us, only 17 months are left and I am sure India will be declared a Hindu nation between those 17 months.”
“This country has been, is and will remain a Hindu nation, the point is to now declare as one. Just because we showed some sympathy to people and let them stay in our father’s home, in our ancestor’s land, does not mean that they have a right in this country, then I want to remind them that this country belongs to us and is our father’s property, not a charity.”
“This is like someone has put their handkerchief on our seats on the bus, and we have showed them sympathy by allowing them to take our seats. And now, one man, along with 4 women and 44 children have come and have put as many handkerchief. While many people let it go, I resisted against this, saying that you are taking all our seats today, might as well take the whole bus. Tomorrow, if these people come and put their handkerchief on our country and say that it is theirs, what then?”
“In this country, the terrorism of judicial activism is going on. The judges should only pronounce judgements in those areas where they have some expertise and knowledge, we shall them abide by it and make others abide by it too. I am standing on this stage today and issuing a warning that Hindus will not let them interfere in areas of nature and religion.”
“You give your own orders, the courts cannot issue any orders here. This country belongs to everyone. This country belongs to those who say ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’, and not to those who say that even if you keep a knife on my throat, I will not say ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’. These people should be reminded that we were the ones who used to use knifes and swords, and we are the ones who made you change your pyjamas.”
The video can be viewed here:
Location: New Delhi
Hate monger Suresh Chavhanke delivered a communal speech targeting Muslims, calls for turning India into a Hindu nation, and targets the judiciary at an event organized for Shankaracharya Nischalananda Saraswati. pic.twitter.com/OJl7qvf4Da — HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) April 27, 2023
At the cost of repetition, Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP), we are detailing the repeated orders below of the Supreme Court of India including the most recent, April 28 when strict orders were passed to state authorities especially in Maharashtra to implement the law and other statutory guidelines.
On April 28, the Supreme Court, in a significant development, the Supreme Court extended the application of its October 2022 order (which directed the Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Police to take suo moto action against hate speech cases) to all States and Union Territories. So now, all States/UTs are enjoined to take suo moto action to register FIR against hate speeches, without waiting for any formal complaint. The bench comprising Justices KM Joseph and BV Nagarathna said the following:
“Respondents (states) shall ensure that immediately, as and when any speech or any action takes place which attracts offences such as Section 153A, 153B, 295A and 506 of IPC etc, without any complaint being filed suo moto action be taken to register cases and proceed against the offenders in accordance with law. Respondents will issue directions to the subordinates so that appropriate action can be taken at the earliest. We further make it clear that such action be taken irrespective of the religion of the maker of the speech, so that the secular character of Bharat as envisaged by the Preamble is preserved.”
In its October 21, 2022 order, the Supreme Court had issued interim directions to the state Police wherein it had directed that:
“As and when any speech or any action takes place which attracts offences such as Sections 153A, 153B and 295A and 505 of the IPC etc., suo moto action will be taken to register cases even if no complaint is forthcoming and proceed against the offenders in accordance with law.”
The court had further said that non-compliance would amount to contempt of court:
“We make it clear that any hesitation to act in accordance with this direction will be viewed as contempt of this Court and appropriate action will be taken against the erring officers,” the order reads.
Besides, on February 3, 2023, the Supreme Court issued directions with respect to an event which was scheduled to be held in Mumbai on February 5, 2023.The court also outlined directives with respect to taking preventive action in such cases:
“We also direct that the Officer(s), in case, permission is granted and, in case, the occasion arises for invoking the power under Section 151 of Cr.P.C. as aforesaid, it shall be the duty of the Officer(s) concerned to invoke the said power and to act as per the mandate of Section 151 of the Cr.P.C.”
The apex court has, thus, again outlined already codified statutory duties of a police officer which makes it mandatory for them to take action under section 151 of CrPC in case there is apprehension of hate speech. The court, during the last hearing on February 3 had also expressed its disappointment that the police was not taking preventive action or filing complaints suomoto in cases of hate speech, as it had directed in October, 2022 while hearing a bath of petitions against hate speech at various occasions.
Clearly the outfits detailed above and their patron political organisations care little for the laid down law by the Supreme Court, even when it has sharply reiterated police and administrative action in case of such hate speech.
This surge in communal violence has sparked concern among many in India who fear the country is becoming more polarised than ever along Hindu-Muslim lines, a situation detrimental to all but specifically endangering the lives of the targeted group, Muslims. As these Hindutva vigilante groups continue to be allowed to operate freely, unmindful of the law and even the Supreme Court, increasingly taking the law into their own hands, it is the inept conduct of police authorities and administrations that further contributes to this wave of violence flowing unchecked.
Related:
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