Communalism

News of communal violence, mob lynchings, and vigilante attacks on India’s Muslims, Christians, and Sikhs have been arriving daily. Sabrang India compiled the incidents, noting over 10 known cases of vigilante violence against cattle transporters across the country. Additionally, there were 14 incidents of communal violence in various parts of the country, including Odisha, Gujarat, Telangana, and Himachal Pradesh.

On July 5, an incident of mob lynching of a Muslim man was reported in UP, on July 6, the police booked those who put out social media posts on the incident while maintaining the same to be a case of culpable homicide, deemed the social media posts to be “malicious” and “wrong”

As India won the T20 World Cup after 17 years, an ecstatic pacer Mohammed Siraj of team India was faced with trolling on a post celebrating the team’s victory. This news comes in the wake of a report from Gujarat, where a young Muslim man was mobbed to death during a cricket tournament after some locals were unhappy over too many Muslims being in the cricket teams.

In Chikhodara, Anand district, Gujarat, a young Muslim man named Salman Hanifbhai Whora was beaten to death during a cricket match.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and BJP State President Bhabesh Kalita have called Muslims of Assam ‘communal’, saying that ‘some’ voted as a communal group in Dhubri where Congress’ candidate Rakibul Hussain won.

In Delhi’s Sangam Vihar, a carcass of an animal was found a short distance from a temple. After the incident, a man named Karnail Singh reportedly called out for the slaughter of 2 lakh Muslims. Local Muslims have even been prompted to move out as tensions simmered in the area.

The CPI-M, a prominent yet numerically small member of the INDIA alliance of opposition parties has, through a statement of its Polit Bureau strongly condemned the spate of hate crimes against Indian Muslims

Emon Paul from Assam’s Kokrajhar district has been arrested after he was caught making offensive remarks against the religion of Islam. Paul was arrested after his statements were found to be disturbing the delicate communal harmony of the area. In the video released he has also threatened to kill people. The incident comes only a short while after the chief minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma made reportedly incendiary remarks on Muslims in Assam.

Violence, including stone pelting and arson, took place near the Eidgah at Jodhpur’s Soorsagar region. Videos from the site have emerged where local women can be seen claiming that they were dragged out of their houses and assaulted. BJP’s local MLA Devendra Joshi has also told the media that those who have assaulted these men, women and children should be charged against.

Delivering hate speeches, which Modi did recently, is contrary to the ethos of Yoga and its foundational ideals of truth and non-violence.