Speaking to the media, as reported in The Times of India, Baraiya had proffered a self-propounded, twisted “theory” on why infant girls aged 4 to 10 months were victims of sexual crimes. “In India, the maximum number of rapes are visited upon women from SC, ST and OBC categories. The theory of rape is, when a man, walking down the road, sees a beautiful, extremely beautiful woman, then his mind could be distracted, a rape may follow (sic),” he had said.

He had then asked: “Are there any extremely beautiful women among SCs, STs and OBCs? Why then are they raped? Because such instructions are given in our religious scripts… It has been mentioned that if you have intimacy with women of these castes then it is the same as going on apilgrimage.”

Left shame-faced, Congress went on the defensive. Party state president Jitu Patwari was forced to issue a statement on Saturday evening saying a criminal who rapes women has no caste or religion. He is simply a criminal who deserves harshest punishment under law … What Phool Singh Baraiya said is his personal opinion. Congress does not agree with it. He has been asked to clarify his remark.”

Related:

Manipur gang-rape survivor dies without justice, three years after 2023 ethnic violence

Protest outside Delhi HC gate over bail in Unnao rape case, survivor’s mother asks for maximum punishment

Delhi HC grants bail pending appeal to Unnao rape convict Kuldeep Singh Sengar

The post MP: Beautiful woman ‘distracts, rape may follow’ says Cong MLA, outrage follows appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The survivor, who was abducted and gang-raped in May 2023 during the early days of the Meitei–Kuki ethnic clashes, passed away on January 10, 2026, while undergoing treatment in Guwahati. According to her family and Kuki organisations, the injuries and trauma she suffered never healed, leaving her physically fragile and psychologically withdrawn until her death.

Abduction and assault amid breakdown of law and order

As reported by The Indian Express, the woman—then 18 years old—was kidnapped on May 15, 2023, from Imphal while attempting to withdraw money from an ATM. She was taken away in a white Bolero by four armed men dressed in black shirts, allegedly associated with Meitei militant group Arambai Tenggol, which was active during the peak of the violence.

In her First Information Report (FIR), the survivor alleged that she was handed over to the men by members of the Meira Paibi, a Meitei women’s vigilante group—an allegation repeatedly raised by Kuki organisations.

She was taken to multiple locations, including Langol and Bishnupur, where three of the men allegedly raped her repeatedly while the fourth drove the vehicle. She later told NDTV in a July 2023 interview that she was blindfolded, denied food and water, tortured through the night, and left for dead on a hilltop.

“I was taken to a hill where they tortured and assaulted me. Whatever miserable things they could do to me, they did,” she had said.

In the early hours of the next morning, she managed to escape under the pretext of going to relieve herself. Injured and bleeding, she ran downhill, eventually hiding under a pile of vegetables in an autorickshaw that took her to safety. She was first treated in Kangpokpi and later referred to hospitals in Kohima, Guwahati, and Manipur.

Delayed fir, CBI probe, and no arrests

Due to the near-total collapse of law and order in Manipur at the time, the survivor could file a police complaint only on July 21, 2023—over two months after the assault. A zero FIR was registered at Kangpokpi police station and later transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

According to The Hindu, the case is currently being heard in a special CBI court in Guwahati. However, nearly two and a half years later, no arrests have been made, charges have not been framed, and the survivor’s family says they received no meaningful updates from either the Manipur Police or the CBI.

Prolonged trauma and declining health

The woman’s family told Newslaundry and other media outlets that she never recovered from the physical injuries or psychological shock of the assault. She suffered from breathing difficulties, uterine complications, depression, and recurring illness.

“My daughter was always smiling and full of life before this happened,” her mother said. “After the incident, she lost her smile. She would stay at home, not talk much, sometimes read the Bible, sometimes watch TV.”

The Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) stated that she developed serious uterine and internal injuries and required repeated hospitalisation across three states. While the family received some compensation, its source and adequacy remain unclear.

Death sparks outrage, renewed demands

Following her death, Kuki organisations in Manipur and Delhi organised candlelight vigils and issued strong statements demanding justice. The ITLF described her death as “another painful testimony to the ruthless targeting of the Kuki-Zo people” and reiterated that the community now has “no option but to demand a separate administration for our safety, dignity, and survival” (PTI).

The Kuki Students’ Organisation (KSO), Delhi & NCR demanded that her death be officially recognised as a consequence of the 2023 violence.

“Any attempt to treat her death as unrelated would amount to a denial of justice and an erasure of responsibility,” the KSO said, calling on the Centre to expedite the creation of a separate administrative arrangement for tribal communities.

The Kuki-Zo Women’s Forum, Delhi & NCR remembered the survivor for her resilience. “For nearly three years, she carried pain that no human being should ever have to bear,” the group said.

‘A National Shame’: Brinda Karat

Senior CPI(M) leader and former Rajya Sabha MP Brinda Karat described the survivor’s death as a “national shame,” underscoring the failure of the state and justice system nearly two years after the crime, as per PTI.

“She was victimised twice—first by politics that fuelled hatred and violence, and then by a system that failed to act with urgency,” Karat said. A member of the CPI(M) politburo and former general secretary of the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), Karat has been documenting cases of sexual violence in Manipur and had met the survivor’s family during a visit to the state.

Karat blamed the political climate fostered by the RSS–BJP for creating an atmosphere of impunity that allowed armed groups to operate unchecked during the violence. “Her death without justice is a damning reflection on our administrative and judicial institutions,” she said, adding that the delay cost the survivor not only dignity, but ultimately her life.

A broader crisis of accountability

The survivor’s death has once again drawn attention to unresolved cases of sexual violence during the Manipur conflict, which erupted in May 2023 over land rights, political representation, and ethnic tensions between the valley-dominant Meitei community and hill-based Kuki-Zo tribes.

According to official figures, more than 260 people have been killed and over 60,000 displaced. Manipur has been under President’s Rule since February 2025, yet survivors and families continue to report inertia, silence, and denial of justice.

“She was not only a daughter of Manipur,” Brinda Karat said, “but a daughter of India.”

Her death—without arrests, without accountability, and without closure—now stands as a stark indictment of the state’s response to sexual violence in conflict zones, and a reminder of the human cost of prolonged inaction.

Related:

Broken State, Divided People: PUCL releases report of Independent People’s Tribunal on Manipur

Manipur Violence: Two years down, health rights activists demand restoration and spread of essential services all over state

Arambai Tenggol: champions of Manipur’s ‘integrity’ or a Meitei communal militia?

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2024: Peace, a distant dream for Manipur

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Manipur on Edge: Violent Clashes Erupt on the day following Kuki-Zo Protests Demanding Separate Administration, action against state CM based on leaked tapes

The post Manipur gang-rape survivor dies without justice, three years after 2023 ethnic violence appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The controversial and recently conducted elections to the civic body –given huge allegations of malpractices in voter lists (exclusion of voters), delible ink being used, introduction of new machines etc. were conducted over 24 administrative wards. From sewerage operations to public health, the BMC handles local civic issues in these wards, named alphabetically from A to T. Each administrative ward is further subdivided into smaller electoral wards for which corporators are elected. There are 227 of these electoral wards. Out of these, 113 fall under the General Category, while 114 are reserved for women, including women belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, and the Backwards Class of Citizens. So 121 women elected in all.

Of these 121 women, there are 14 Muslim women and one Christian woman. The break up party wise is as follows:

BJP’s winning women candidates

Ward 2 – Tejaswi Ghosadkar

Ward 8 – Yogita Patil

Ward 13 – Rani Dwivedi-Nighot

Ward 14 – Seema Kiran Shinde

Ward 15 – Jigna Shah

Ward 16 – Shweta Korgaonkar

Ward 17 – Dr Shilpa Sangore

Ward 19 – Dakshata Kavthankar

Ward 21 – Leena Deherkar

Ward 24 – Swait Jaiswal

Ward 25 – Nisha Bangera

Ward 27 – Neelam Gurav

Ward 31 – Manisha Yadav

Ward 44    – Sangeeta Sharma

Ward 46 – Yogita Koli

Ward 52    – Priti Satam

Ward 57 – Shrikala Pille

Ward 60    – Saylee Kulkarni

Ward 69 – Sudha Singh

Ward 71 – Sunita Makvani

Ward 72    – Mamta Yadav

Ward 80 – Disha Yadav

Wars 81 – Kesarben Murji Patel

Ward 82    – Ameen Jagdeshwari

Ward 84 – Anjali Samant

Ward 98    – Alka Kerkar

Ward 100 – Swapna Mhatre

Ward 103 – Hetal Gala

Ward 105 – Anita Vaiti

Ward 108 – Deepika Ghag

Ward 112 – Sakshi Dalvi

Ward 116 – Jagruti Patil

Ward 126 – Archana Bhalerao

Ward 129 – Ashwini Matekar

Ward 131 – Rakhi Jadhav

Ward 132 – Ritu Tavde

Ward 149 – Sushma Sawant

Ward 151 – Kashish Phulwariya

Ward 152 – Asha Marathe

Ward 172 – Rajeshri Shirvadkar

Ward 173 – Shilpa Keluskar

Ward 174 – Sakshi Kanojia

Ward 176 – Rekha Yadav

Ward 190 – Sheetal Gambhir

Ward 218 – Snehal Tendulkar

Ward 222 – Rita Makvana

Ward 227 – Gaoravi Shivalkar-Narwekar

These total 47 women councillors

Shiv Sena (UBT) women councillors

Ward 12 – Sarika Zhore

Ward 32 – Geeta Bhandari

Ward 39 – Pushpa Kalambe

Ward 56 – Laxmi Nitin Bhatiya

Ward 64 – Khan Rashid

Ward 73 – Lona Rawat

Ward 77 – Shivani Parab

Ward 83 – Sonali Sabe

Ward 88 – Sharvari Parab

Ward 93 – Rohini Kamble

Ward 94 – Pragya Bhutkar

Ward 114 – Rajul Patil

Ward 117 – Shweta Pawaskar

Ward 118 – Sunita Jadhav

Ward 121 – Priyadarshini Nagesh

Ward 124 – Sakina Ayub Sheikh

Ward 127 – Swarupa Patil

Ward 153 – Minakshi Patankar

Ward 155 – Snehal Shivkar

Ward 157 – Dr. Sarita Mhaske

Ward 158 – Chitra Sangle

Ward 169 – Pravina Morajkar

Ward 171 – Adv. Rani Yerunkar

Ward 186 – Archana Shinde

Ward 189- Harshala More

Ward 191 – Vishakha Raut

Ward 193 – Hemangi Varlikar

Ward 198 – Aboli Khadiye

Ward 199 – Kishori Pednekar

Ward 200 – Urmila Panchal

Ward 202 – Shraddha Jadhav

Ward 203 – Shraddha Pednekar

Ward 210 – Sonam Jamsudkar

Ward 220 – Sampada Mayekar

This totals 34 women corporators from SS (UBT).

Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) women councillors:

Ward 1 – Rekha Yadav

Ward 11 – Dr. Aditi Khursange

Ward 18 – Sandhya Doshi

Ward 42 – Dhanashree Bharadkar

Ward 51 – Varsha Tembvalkar

Ward 78 – Sofi Abdul Jabbar

Ward 133 – Nirmiti Kanade

Ward 142 – Apeksha Khandekar

Ward 146 – Samruddhi Kate

Ward 147 – Pragya Sadafule

Ward 148 – Anjali Naik

Ward 156 – Ashwini Matekar

Ward 160 – Kiran Landge

Ward 163 – Shaila Lande

Ward 166 – Minal Sanjay Turde

Ward 180 – Trushna Vishvasrao

Ward 209 – Yamini Jadhav

This totals 17 women corporators.

Women Corporators from Congress:

Ward 33 – Qamar Jahan Moin Siddiqui

Ward 28 – Ajanta Yadav

Ward 61 – Divya Sinh

Ward 90 – Adv. Tulip Miranda

Ward 110 – Asha Suresh Koparkar

Ward 101 – Karen Dmello

Ward 150 – Vaishali Ajit Shendekar

Ward 179 – Ayesha Vanu

Ward 183 – Asha Kale

Ward 184 – Sajida Khan

Ward 213 – Nasima Javed Juneja

Ward 216 – Rajashree Bhatankar

Ward 224- Ruksana Parikh Nurulamin

This makes a total of 13 women candidates.

MNS Four Women Councillors

Ward 38 – Surekha Parab

Ward 74 – Vidha Aarya

Ward 128 – Sae Shirke

Ward 205- Supriya Dilip Dalvi

AIMIM: (Four councillors)

Ward 134 – Mehjabin Khan

Ward 139 – Shabana Sheikh

Ward 143 – Shabana Kazi

Ward 145 – Khairunnisa Hussein

Samajwadi Party (One woman candidate who won)

Ward 212 – Abrahani Amrin Shehzad

Nationalist Congress Party (One woman candidate who won)

Ward 168 – Dr Saeeda Khan

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The post BMC: Women corporators past the 50% mark, 121 women get elected in 2026 appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The latest outburst was on January 11, 2026, when inaugurating the Swabhiman Parv (self-respect event) in Somnath, he declared that “every particle of the soil of Prabhas Patan is a witness to valor, courage, and heroism, and that countless devotees of Shiva sacrificed their lives for the preservation of Somnath’s form. He said that on the occasion of Somnath Swabhiman Parv, he bows first to every brave man and woman who dedicated their lives to the protection and reconstruction of Somnath, offering everything to Lord Mahadeva.”[1]

Shri Modi further stated that “when invaders from Ghazni to Aurangzeb attacked Somnath, they believed their swords were conquering eternal Somnath, but those fanatics failed to understand that the very name ‘Som’ carries the essence of nectar, the idea of remaining immortal even after consuming poison. He added that within Somnath resides the conscious power of Sadashiva Mahadev, who is both benevolent and the fierce ‘Prachanda Tandava Shiva’.”

[‘PM addresses the Somnath Swabhiman Parv in Somnath, Gujarat’, 11 Jan, 2026, https://www.pmindia.gov.in/en/news_updates/pm-addresses-the-somnath-swabhiman-parv-in-somnath-gujarat/?comment=disable]

The senior most security advisor of the RSS-BJP government and close confidant of PM Modi, Ajit Doval was at his best seeking revenge for the religious crimes of Muslim rulers.  Speaking at the opening ceremony of Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue, at Delhi on January 9, 2026, Doval said, “This independent India wasn’t always as free as it appears now. Our ancestors made great sacrifices for it. They endured great humiliation and experienced periods of profound helplessness. Many people faced the gallows… Our villages were burned. Our civilisation was destroyed. Our temples were looted, and we watched helplessly as silent spectators. This history presents us with a challenge that every young person in India today should have the fire within them. The word ‘revenge’ isn’t ideal, but revenge itself is a powerful force. We have to take revenge for our history. We have to take this country back to where we can build a great India based on our rights, our ideas, and our beliefs.”[2]

[‘NSA Ajit Doval urges youth to learn from history, rebuild a strong India’ 10 Jan-2026, https://firstindia.co.in/news/delhi/nsa-ajit-doval-urges-youth-to-learn-from-history-rebuild-a-strong-india]

The gist of the speeches of both Modi and Doval was that Muslims destroyed Hindu temples. The revenge has to be taken from Indian Muslims who are necessarily children of the Muslim rulers. These calls were nothing but brazen demonizing the largest religious minority of India. PM Modi and NSA chief, in fact, were dog-whistling for cleansing of Muslims. However, we need to compare the above-mentioned claims with the ‘Hindu’ narratives of destruction of Somnath Temple.

No sane person can deny that Somnath Temple in Gujarat was desecrated, looted and razed by an army led by Mahmud Ghazi (Mahmud Ghaznavi) in 1026. But a crucial fact remains buried that it was done with the active help and participation of local Hindu chieftains. The most prominent ideologue of RSS, MS Golwalkar while referring to the desecration and destruction of Somnath Temple by Mahmud Ghazi in the RSS English organ, Organizer (January 4, 1950) stated:

“He crossed the Khyber Pass and set foot in Bharat to plunder the wealth of Somnath. He had to cross the great desert of Rajasthan. There was a time when he had no food, and no water for his army, and even for himself left to his fate, he would have perished…But no, Mahmud Ghazi made the local chieftains to believe that Saurashtra had expansionist designs against them. In their folly and pettiness, they believed him. And they joined him. When Mahmud Ghazi launched his assault on the great temple, it was the Hindu, blood of our blood, flesh of our flesh, soul of our soul-who stood in the vanguard of his army. Somnath was desecrated with the active help of the Hindus. These are facts of history.”

[Organizer, January 4, 1950.]

So far as valour of defenders of Somnath Temple against ‘idol-breaker’ Ghazni was concerned founder of Arya Samaj, Swami Dayananda Sarswati in his fundamental work, Satyarth Prakash, a Bible for Arya Samajists, stated that instead of resisting the army of defilers, the then priests, “made offering, called on gods and prayed: ‘O Mahadeva kill this infidel and protect us!’ They advised their royal followers to have patience as Mahadeva would send Bhairava or Bhadra who would kill all the infidels (mlechhas) or blinden them…Many popish astrologers said that it was not astrologically proper for their advance…Thus the warriors were misled and delayed.  The army of infidels soon came and surrounded them. They fled in disgrace.”  [Swami Dayananda Sarswati, Light of Truth (English translation of Satyarth Prakash), Dayanand Sansthan, Delhi, 1908, p. 328.]

PM, Ajit Doval and the entire Hindutva tribe instead of calling for revenge against Muslims need to do a serious introspection about the guilty-men responsible for the desecration of Somnath Temple. It is generally accepted that Mahmud entered India as aggressor seventeen times between 1000 AD and 1027 AD. He travelled approximately 2000 kilometres from Ghazni to reach Somnath Temple in 1025, covering almost 1000 kilometres in the region which fell in India. According to ‘Hindu’ narrative after destroying the Temple he travelled back with huge precious booty laden on hundreds of camels and horses. Those who are telling stories of valour at Somnath need to tell the nation: Who allowed his journey back? Why were he and his gang of robbers not liquidated despite destroying one of the holiest temples of India? The horrendous reality is that our ancestors miserably failed in resisting one of the meanest aggressors in Indian history.

Desecration of Buddhist and Jain Temples by ‘Hindus’

These were not ‘Muslim’ rulers only who were defiling Hindu temples. Swami Vivekananda shared the fact that, “Temple of Jagannath is an old Buddhistic temple. We took this and others over and re-Hinduised them. We shall have to do many things like that yet”.

[The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, vol. 3, 264.]

It has been corroborated by another darling of the Hindutva fraternity, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee. According to him the Rath Yatra, an integral part of the rituals connected with Jagganath Temple was originally a Buddhist ritual. Bankim Chndra Chatterjee wrote:

“I am aware that another and a very reasonable, account of the origin of the festival of Rath [at Jagganath Temple] has been given by General Cunningham in his work on the Bhilsa Topes. He there traces it to a similar festival of the Buddhists, in which the three symbols of the Buddhist faith, Buddha, Dharmma, and Sangha, were drawn in a car in the same fashion, and I believe about the same season as the Rath. It is a fact greatly in support of the theory, that the images of Jagannath, Balaram, and Subhadra, which now figure in the Rath, are near copies of the representations of Buddha, Dharmma, and Sangha, and appear to have been modelled upon them.”[Chatterjee, Bankim Chandra, ‘On the origin of Hindu festivals’ in Essays & Letters, Rupa, Delhi, 2010, pp. 8-9.]

Conversion of Buddhist monasteries into Hindu temples was a common occurrence after Buddhist rulers were gradually overthrown by Brahmins. This process began when the last of Maurya dynasty’s Buddhist king (Ashoka being one), Brihadratha was assassinated by Pushyamitra Shunga, a Brahmin in 184 BCE thus ending the rule of a renowned Buddhist dynasty and establishing the rule of Brahman Shunga dynasty. It was corroborated by Bankim in his controversial novel Anandmath, Bible of the Hindu nationalism. He described the scene of a temple used by Hindu army in the following words:

“Within this wood there stood a large monastery on a large piece of land with broken stones all around. Antiquarians would perhaps say that it was a Buddhist monastery in old days and was subsequently converted into a Hindu one.” [Sen-Gupta, Nares Chandra (translator Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s Anandamath), Abbey of Bliss, Padmini Mohan Neogi, Calcutta, nd, 16]

Many of Jain temples too met the same tragic fate. Swami Dayanand Saraswati regarded as a Prophet of Hindutva while dealing with the contribution of Adi Shankaracharya (8^TH CENTURY) in his tome, Satyarth Prakash wrote:

“For ten years he toured all over the country, refuted Jainism and advocated the Vedic religion. All the broken images that are now-a-days dug out of the earth were broken in the time of Shankar, whilst those that are found whole (unbroken) here and there under the ground had been buried by the Jainis for fear of their being broken.” [Swami Dayananda Sarswati, Light of Truth (English translation of Satyarth Prakash), Dayanand Sansthan, Delhi, 1908, p. 294.]

Crimes of Maratha ‘Hindu’ armies against Hindus

Sir Jadunath Sarkar (1870-1958), a renowned historian, held no brief for Islam or Muslim rulers in India. In fact, he is regarded as a Hindu historian, narrator of the history of India from a Hindu point of view. His description of the Maratha invasion of Bengal in early 1740s, makes it clear that this army of ‘Hindu nation’ cared least about honour and property of Hindus of Bengal. According to Sarkar, “the roving Maratha bands committed wanton destruction and unspeakable outrage”. [Jadunath Sarkar (ed.), The History of Bengal-Volume II Muslim Period 1200 A.D.–1757 A.D. (Delhi: BR Publishing, 2003), (first edition 1948), p. 457.]

Sarkar, in his monumental work on the history of Bengal, reproduced eyewitness accounts of the sufferings of Bengali Hindus at the hands of Marathas. According to one such eyewitness, Gangaram,

“The Marathas snatched away gold and silver, rejecting everything else. Of some people they cut off the hands, of some the nose and ear; some they killed outright. They dragged away the beautiful women and freed them only after raping them”. [Jadunath Sarkar (ed.), The History of Bengal-Volume II Muslim Period 1200 A.D.–1757 A.D. (Delhi: BR Publishing, 2003), (first edition 1948), 457.]

Another eyewitness, Vaneshwar Vidyalankar, the court Pandit of the Maharaja of Bardwan, narrated the horrifying tales of atrocities committed by the Marathas against Hindus in the following words:

“Shahu Raja’s troops are niggard of pity, slayers of pregnant women and infants, of Brahmans and the poor, fierce of spirit, expert in robbing the property of everyone and committing every kind of sinful act.” [Ibid., 458.]

Another crucial fact which is consciously kept under wrap is that despite more than 500 hundred years of ‘Muslim’/Mughal rule which according to Hindutva historians was nothing but a project of annihilating Hindus or forcibly converting the latter to Islam, India remained a nation with an almost 2/3 majority of Hindus at the historical juncture when even ceremonial ‘Muslim’ rule was over. The British rulers held first census in 1871-72. According to the Census report:

“The population of British India is, in round numbers, divided into 140½ millions [sic] of Hindoos (including Sikhs), or 73½ per cent., 40¾ millions of Mahomedans, or 21½ per cent. And 9¼ millions of others, or barely 5 per cent., including under this title Buddhists and Jains, Christians, Jews, Parsees, Brahmoes…”

This happened because Hindu dominent Castes with few exceptions decided to serve the Muslim rulers for hundreds of years which is known as a relationship of roti-beti (bread and daughter).

[Memorandum on the Census of British India of 1871-72: Presented to both Houses of Parliament by Command of Her Majesty London, George Edward Eyre and William Spottiswoode, Her Majesty’s Stationary Office 1875, 16.]

The linking of crimes committed by rulers with Muslim names in the pre-modern India to their religion is going to create serious unthinkable consequences even for ‘Hindu’ history as narrated by the RSS.

Take for example, Ravana, the king of Lanka who according to again ‘Hindu’ narrative committed unspeakable crimes against Sita, her husband Lord Rama and his companions for 14 years long vanvaas or exile. This Ravana, according to the same narrative, was a learned Brahman who also happened to be one of the greatest worshippers of Lord Shiva.

The epic Mahabharata is a story of a great war between two families known as Pandavas and Kauravas (both Kashtriyas) not between Hindus and Muslims but between two ‘Hindu’ armies in which, if you go by the ‘Hindu’ version 1.2 billion (120 crore) people, all Hindus are stated to have been slaughtered. Draupadi joint wife of Pandavas was disrobed by Kauravas, all Hindus. Modi and Doval must be aware that if the crimes of Ravana and Kauravas, are linked to their religion then India country will lose 80% of the population. And if revenge is to be taken from the present descendants of the past perpetrators then beginning must be made from the beginning of the Indian civilization; turn of the Indian Muslims will come far later!

[1] ‘PM addresses the Somnath Swabhiman Parv in Somnath, Gujarat’, 11 Jan, 2026, https://www.pmindia.gov.in/en/news_updates/pm-addresses-the-somnath-swabhiman-parv-in-somnath-gujarat/?comment=disable

[2] ‘NSA Ajit Doval urges youth to learn from history, rebuild a strong India’ 10 Jan-2026, https://firstindia.co.in/news/delhi/nsa-ajit-doval-urges-youth-to-learn-from-history-rebuild-a-strong-india

Related:

Babri Mosque Demolition: When the Indian State succumbed to majoritarian propaganda

November 26: How RSS mourned the passage of India’s Constitution by the Constituent Assembly

NCERT’s ‘Partition Horrors’: A brazen exercise in white-washing the ‘crimes’ of the Hindu Mahasabha & RSS

The post Busted: ‘Hindu’ Narratives of Desecration of Somnath, Buddhist & Jain Temples in India appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The complaint underscores how Shingla’s speech—delivered from the stage of a Hanuman Katha organised by Dayanidhi Dham Seva Sanstha—constituted a deliberate attempt to weaponise religion, gender, and fear to polarise the electorate and vitiate the electoral atmosphere in one of India’s most diverse and politically sensitive cities.

A religious platform turned into a site of electoral polarisation

According to the complaint, the Model Code of Conduct came into effect on December 15, 2025, following the announcement of municipal elections. Despite this, Shingla used a religious congregation to propagate the discredited and incendiary conspiracy theory of “love jihad”, making sweeping allegations against Muslim men and publicly demeaning Muslim women in language that was both communal and gendered.

At the event, she claimed that her organisation or associates had “brought back 2,500 women in Mumbai from Abduls”—a statement that uses a Muslim name as a proxy for criminality and casts interfaith relationships as coercive, conspiratorial, and inherently illegitimate. The complaint notes that such assertions are not only entirely unverified, but mirror a pattern of rhetoric repeatedly rejected by courts and investigating agencies for lacking any factual basis.

Gendered hate speech and the public shaming of Muslim identity

One of the most disturbing aspects of the speech, as highlighted by CJP, was Shingla’s exhortation to the crowd through the slogan: “Be Durga, be Kali, never be a ‘burqewali.’”

The complaint explains that this slogan operates on multiple levels of harm: it pits Hindu religious symbolism against Muslim identity, portrays Muslim women as objects of shame, and urges the rejection—indeed erasure—of Muslim identity in public life. By instrumentalising women’s bodies and choices to advance a communal narrative, the speech amounts to gendered hate speech, intensifying religious hostility through misogyny.

The video of the speech, now widely circulated online and annexed with the complaint, shows Shingla repeatedly mobilising fear and suspicion by invoking religion, gender, and an imagined Muslim threat before a public audience.

Clear and multiple violations of the Model Code of Conduct

CJP’s complaint details how the speech violates core prohibitions under Part I of the Model Code of Conduct, including:

• Appeals to religion to influence voters
• Use of religious platforms and events for political mobilisation
• Statements that promote hatred and aggravate differences between communities
• Campaign practices that corrupt the free and fair electoral environment

Importantly, the complaint stresses that the MCC applies not only to candidates, but also to any individual whose actions are intended to influence the political climate during elections—a principle repeatedly affirmed by the Election Commission in past cases.

Offences under the Representation of the People Act, 1951

Beyond the MCC, the complaint invokes serious statutory violations under the Representation of the People Act, 1951, including:

• Section 123(3): Appeal to religion, through the invocation of Hindu deities in opposition to Muslim identity
• Section 123(3A): Promotion of enmity and hatred between religious communities
• Section 125: Promoting enmity in connection with elections, a penal offence

CJP argues that Shingla’s speech squarely falls within these provisions, as it was delivered during an election period and was designed to reshape political consciousness along religious lines.

Assault on constitutional values of equality, dignity, and secularism

The complaint situates the speech within a broader constitutional framework, warning that such rhetoric strikes at the heart of India’s constitutional order. By collectively stereotyping Muslims, demeaning Muslim women, and legitimising religious exclusion, the speech violates:

• Article 14 (Equality before the law)
• Article 15 (Non-discrimination on religious grounds)
• Article 21 (Right to dignity, particularly of women)
• The secular, egalitarian, and fraternal values enshrined in the Preamble

CJP notes that the Supreme Court has consistently held that inflammatory speech and incitement cannot be shielded by free speech, especially in the electoral context where the stakes involve democratic participation and social peace.

Threat to free and fair elections in a plural city

Mumbai’s religious diversity makes it particularly vulnerable to the consequences of such polarising rhetoric. The complaint warns that speeches like Shingla’s:

• Create fear and mistrust between communities
• Intimidate minority voters and suppress participation
• Normalise communal hostility as a political strategy
• Risk triggering social tension and unrest

Allowing such conduct to go unchecked, CJP argues, would erode the level playing field essential to democratic elections.

Accountability of event organisers

The complaint also flags the role of Dayanidhi Dham Seva Sanstha, the organiser of the Hanuman Katha, for allowing a religious platform to be used for communal mobilisation during the election period. CJP reminds the Election Commission that organisers of religious events cannot abdicate responsibility when their platforms are used to violate electoral norms.

CJP’s demand for immediate and decisive action

In its prayer, CJP has urged the State Election Commission of Maharashtra to:

• Take immediate cognisance of the complaint and video evidence
• Initiate proceedings under the Model Code of Conduct against Kajal Shingla
• Restrain her from making further communal speeches during the election period
• Examine the role of the organising body
• Issue a general advisory reaffirming that religious platforms cannot be used for communal propaganda during elections.

The complete complaint may be read here.

Related:

From Fringe to Framework: How AHP’s hate ecosystem reconfigured law, society, and electoral politics

Communal Dog-Whistles in an Election Season: CJP flags hate speech by BJP’s Ameet Satam to election authorities

From Hate Speech to State Action: How communal vigilantism at Malabar Hill continues unchecked

CJP flags serial inflammatory speeches by Kalicharan Maharaj, seeks urgent action over repeated calls for Muslim exclusion and vigilantism

The post Complaint exposes misuse of religious event to inflame fear and violate electoral norms in Mumbai appeared first on SabrangIndia.

After videos that went viral of a violent lynching of a Muslim man, Makarand Muhammad of Astia village in Odisha’s Balasore district, three suspects were reportedly arrested for lynching the 33-year-old. Before that, a video of social media, of the victim being asked to chant a religious slogan and being assaulted had emerged the previous day, Wednesday, January 7. The victim, Sheikh Makarand Muhammad of Astia village, was reportedly a helper in a pickup van that was waylaid for ferrying cattle. He was attacked with sharp weapons and pipes, cops quoting the man’s brother said. The viral video, alleged to be that of the incident, shows the group assaulting Mohammed with pipes and forcing him to shout “Jai Shri Ram” and “Gau Mata Ki Jai”. Despite his compliance with this violent aggression, the mob did not stop the beating.

At the outset, The Telegraph and New Indian Express reported, a group of cow vigilantes tried to stop the van Mohammed was in. The pick-up van travelling from the Jayadeva Kasba side, overturned on the outskirts of a town. While the driver of the van escaped, Mohammed was caught by the mob, The Telegraph reported.

Later though the police took Mohammed to hospital, but on Thursday, he succumbed to injuries he had suffered during the attack.

The police have registered a case under a section of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita that pertains to lynching by a group motivated by prejudice based on religion, race or caste. Mohammed’s brother. This is the second FIR in the case. Sk Jitendar Mahammad, had filed a police complaint and named five persons as suspects. In his statement, he alleged that five men had intercepted the van and assaulted his brother with deadly weapons. He further stated that although a police patrol vehicle reached the spot and shifted Mahammad to the Balasore District Headquarters Hospital, he died during treatment. Based on the second complaint, police booked five accused under Section 103(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which pertains to punishment for murder committed by a mob.

The Odisha police reportedly initially registered a first FIR based on a complaint related to the pickup van accident. According to this FIR, the vehicle, allegedly being driven rashly, lost balance and overturned on the roadside. It stated that by the time police reached the spot, the driver had already been shifted to a hospital and a cow was found at the site.

“The cow was seized and brought to the Maa Bharati Goshala, and the pickup vehicle was brought to the police station. The complainant submitted a written report for taking legal action against the owner and driver of the pickup van,” the first FIR noted.

Rabi Behera, the head of the Odisha Milk Farmers’ Association, was quoted as saying by The Telegraph that the activities of cow vigilantes had increased since the Bharatiya Janata Party government led by Mohan Majhi was elected to power in the state in June 2024. “The government must ensure stern action in such cases,” Behera said.

It is to be seen if any outcome comes of the final investigations, especially with relation to the mob violence and murder. Odisha has seen a spate of attacks on Dalits, Christians and Muslims over the past two years.

Related:

India tops among countries at risk of mass crimes, atrocities, US Holocaust Museum warns

Sharp spike in hate, minorities the target, hate is new normal: India Hate Lab Report 2025

Rituals of Fear, Politics of Hate: How AHP’s national network rewrote the boundaries of democracy and citizenship

The post Odisha: Man forced to chant religious slogan, lynched by cow vigilantes appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Reports by Zee News and others state that these series of violent incidents against Muslim hawkers and workers in Bihar has caused deep fear and anger, with families saying that poor members of the community are being targeted on mere suspicion, abused in public, and attacked without protection. Fresh cases from Katihar, Saharsa and Madhubani show a pattern where daily wage earners and small vendors were beaten, robbed, shot, or killed, while their families are now struggling for justice.

According to media reports, in Katihar district, a young Muslim utensil seller was thrashed after being abused as “Bangladeshi” and also robbed of his hard-earned money. In Saharsa, a biscuit seller was shot after a robbery attempt. In Madhubani, a Muslim youth died after being beaten by a group of people, with his family alleging mob lynching, even as police claim it was a road accident.

The most grievous assault and murder case has come from Madhubani district, where Mohammad Qayoom, a young Muslim man from Haithiwali village, died after being beaten in Pattitol village under Bhairabsthan police station. According to his family and relatives, Qayoom and two friends had gone to buy gutkha from a shop on a motorbike. An argument broke out with the shopkeeper. Soon after, several people gathered and attacked Qayoom.

Police are reported to have taken him to hospital, where doctors declared him dead. While police have suggested it was a road accident, Qayoom’s family strongly rejects this claim. “This was not an accident. He was beaten by many people. His body had injury marks,” a grieving family member said. “Why is the truth being hidden?” Community members say the family fears that the case may be weakened if it is treated as an accident rather than a lynching.

Seen together all these hate crimes have raised serious questions about the security and safety of daily wage earners –hawkers and labourers –in BJP-ruled Bihar, many of whom depend on daily sales to survive.

While the Katihar incident took place on January 11 in the Pothia police station area and the victim, Akmal Rehman, a resident of Simaria Chowk under Korha police station, had gone to Chakla village in Sameli block to sell utensils.  According to victim, Rehman, who spoke to the media, two local youths stopped him, abused him, and accused him of being Bangladeshi. When women who were buying utensils objected, the attackers threatened them as well.

“They started abusing me and saying I was Bangladeshi. When the women spoke up, they got angry and hit me with sticks,” Rehman said from his hospital bed.

The assailants allegedly hit him on the head with a stick. After he fell unconscious, they took ₹12,000 from his shirt pocket and fled. Rehman was admitted to Korha Community Health Centre and is said to be in stable condition. While a written complaint has been submitted to Pothia police station and the Sub-Divisional Police Officer. Police questioning of villagers and women buyers led to the identification of the accused as Chuiya Mandal, son of Patal Mandal, and another local resident of Chakla village.

Sub-Divisional Police Officer (Sadar-2) Ranjan Kumar Singh said, “At first look, this appears to be a robbery case. Villagers have told us that the accused are known for attacking hawkers. We are investigating and action will be taken.”

Relatives and family members, however, say the attack was also driven by hate and fear created around Muslim identity. “My son went to sell utensils, not to fight. Calling him Bangladeshi was an excuse to beat and loot him,” a relative said. In another disturbing case, criminals in Saharsa targeted a Muslim biscuit seller, Mohammad Mujahid. According to police and family sources, Mujahid was robbed and then shot by miscreants. He was rushed to hospital in a critical condition and remains under treatment. Doctors have confirmed that the bullet caused serious injury.

Several locals told media reporters that small Muslim vendors are easy targets because they carry cash and have no protection. The incident has created fear among other hawkers, many of whom have stopped working after dark. Police have said they are searching for the attackers, but no arrests have been announced so far.

Human rights activists and local residents say these incidents show how Muslim hawkers and workers are being treated as suspects instead of citizens under the newly elected administration. “Poor Muslims who sell utensils, biscuits, or small items are being attacked on suspicion alone. This is not law and order, this is failure,” said a local social worker in Katihar. Families of the victims have demanded fair investigation, strict action against the accused, and protection for hawkers who move village to village to earn a living.

As cases pile up, pressure is growing on the Bihar administration to act firmly and restore confidence among Muslim communities who say they feel unsafe even while doing honest work.

Related:

Bihar News: कटिहार में मुस्लिम फेरीवाले से मारपीट; मधुबनी में मॉब लिंचिंग,सहरसा में मारी गोली!

The post Bihar under BJP: Hate attacks against Muslims spiral, one dies appeared first on SabrangIndia.

India was never built on bulldozers. It was built on pluralism, dignity, and equal citizenship.

First, a medical college in Jammu was shut down because Muslim students got admission to MBBS on merit.

Now, a school in Baitul district of Madhya Pradesh has been bulldozed simply because it was built by a Muslim, ON HIS OWN LAND, WITH HIS OWN MONEY, to educate Dalit and Tribal… pic.twitter.com/X65w2Sa1SO

— Gaurav Pandhi (@GauravPandhi) January 15, 2026

Meanwhile the Indian Express  reported that a private school built to educate children from nursery to Class 8 in Madhya Pradesh’s Betul district became the target of a kind of prejudicial politics by the administration when, after rumours falsely branding it as an unauthorised madrasa led to its partial demolition, officials told the newspaper on January 14, Wednesday.

Abdul Naeem, a local resident who had reportedly poured nearly Rs 20 lakh of borrowed money and family savings into the construction, watched portions of his “educational dream” turn to rubble on the evening of January 13 as the dreaded JCB/earthmovers unilaterally brought down the walls and a front shed under administrative orders. No notice, no chance to explain was given to the private owner of the building on private land raising serious questions of the lawfulness or constitutionality of the perverse action.

Reports state that for several years, Naeem had envisioned a nursery-to-Class 8 school for children in Dhaba village and surrounding tribal hamlets, where families often send their children miles away for decent education. He persisted and thereafter secured commercial land diversion, obtained a panchayat NOC, and on December 30 filed his formal application with the School Education Department, submitting all requisite land documents.

“I had decided to construct the school on my private land so that my village can progress and some people can study. Senior officials claimed that we were doing wrong things here,” Naeem said. Even when construction was progressing smoothly when, just three days of viciously circulated rumours led to the brazen action, the demolition. The rumours circulating stated false that a madrasa was being built in the area. Even construction of a Madrasa is in no way a prohibited act!! An anguished Naeem said, “ “This is a village with only three Muslim families. How would a madrasa even function here? And the building wasn’t even complete — no classes, no students,” Naeem said.

Chronology

Last Sunday, January 11, the Gram Panchayat issued a notice ordering Naeem to demolish the structure himself, citing lack of permission. When he rushed to the panchayat office to submit a formal response, he says officials refused to accept his application and told him to return later. Without giving him any opportunity to be heard, two days later, on January 13, as Naeem and a group of concerned villagers travelled to the district collectorate to meet the Collector and seek clarity, the administration moved in. A JCB machine, flanked by heavy police presence, arrived at the site in Dhaba. By dusk, a portion of the school building and the front shed had been razed.

Despite being a public servant answerable to the rule of law and Constitution, Sub-Divisional Magistrate Ajit Maravi defended the action, saying it followed a complaint from the gram panchayat alleging encroachment and rule violations. “A verification found that part of the construction fell under encroachment. Only the illegal portion has been removed, not the entire building,” Maravi said, adding that all mandatory permissions had not been obtained. Naeem strongly disputes this. “I had the panchayat NOC. I had applied for school approval. If there was any mistake in paperwork, I was ready to pay whatever fine the government demanded.”

The Video may be seen here

Related:

Sharp spike in hate, minorities the target, hate is new normal: India Hate Lab Report 2025

Rituals of Fear, Politics of Hate: How AHP’s national network rewrote the boundaries of democracy and citizenship

India tops among countries at risk of mass crimes, atrocities, US Holocaust Museum warns

The post Hate Crime: Abdul Naeem’s school built with private money on his land demolished by bulldozers in Madhya Pradesh appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Resurrecting the outlook of Father Stan Swamy and Prof. G. N. Saibaba, Whither Human Rights in India is both a chronicle of resistance and a call to reshape the future of democracy and human dignity.

Reviews highlight it as imperative for understanding the struggles of minorities, the role of activist scholars (like contributors Harsh Mander, Teesta Setalvad), and the impact of laws like the UAPA on activists.

It is an illustrative and lucid anthology that provides a panoramic view and an unwavering critical analysis of the aggravating crisis in human rights in India, offering profound research on systemic failures and the ongoing fight for justice.

Principally, the book is a comprehensive exploration of how the devastation of human rights over the parts decade are not just a continuation of past patterns but symbolise a crucial departure or rupture, manifesting a new fascist paradigm which will make it an arduous task for future generation s to stand up against to restore past rights.

The essays trace the historical and ideological roots of India’s human rights evolution. They explore how colonial past and constitutional ideals grossly contradict current realities. Critiques analyse the rise of majoritarian politics, state violence, and impunity, especially against minorities.

The book scrutinizes the judiciary, hate speech, “bulldozer justice,” and development models. Features contributions from leading voices like Teesta Setalvad, Harsh Mander, Gautam Navlakha, and Kalpana Kannabiran.

The book addresses the persecution of activists (like the book’s editor, Anand Teltumbde under laws like the UAPA.

In a most illustrative and congeal manner the chapters of the book encompass the unprecedented destruction of human rights during the tyranny of BJP rule.

The first part includes seven papers that give a clear theoretical cognitive on vital spheres lie state violence, impunity, ‘Urban Naxal narrative, the hate speech epidemic persecution engineered by the constitutional executive, controversial supreme court rulings, growing inequality, and the superstructure of New India promoted by BJP, the Gujarat model and the ‘bulldozer justice.’

The second part features nine papers, documenting violations on minority communities like Muslims and Christians.

Introduction by Author

Teltumbde gives a most comprehensive introduction where he explores the evolution of human rights in India from the Colonial days of the British rule, linking it with the rise of British liberalism. He examined the contradictions of British imperialism with liberalism as well as the percolating of liberal ideas and catalysed social reforms that addressed oppressive practices. He chronicled the events that orchestrated the wave of human rights in the Freedom struggle and why World War 2 became a turning point in the global recognition of human rights, with creation of United Nations. Teltumbde has appraised the Indian Constitution of 1950 that secured important rights, praising India’s dedication to preserving human rights in that era.

Pertinent and positive that Tetumbde exposes the glaring loopholes in late prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s policies, who he described as fostering caste discrimination as well as inequality to engineer a largely undemocratic social order, promoting even Preventive Detention and toppling the elected government of Sheikh Abdula h in Kashmir and the Elected Communist party in Kerala.

Anand makes an intensive exploration of the gradual deterioration of human rights in periods like Indo-China War, Emergency, and events under the Congress regimes that were the precursor-sponsored rise of BJP neo-fascism was bitterly critical of the regimes of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, supressing workers and student movements. He scrutinized how the 1991 economic reforms although boosted private enterprise and consumer freedom, escalated economic equality, displaced large populations and marginalised the poor due to privatisation, and linked those aberrations with informalisation of labour and commercialisation of services like healthcare and education that engineered a new era of human rights violations.

Teltumbde recounted the Babri Masjid demolition orchestrating communal polarisation and widespread violence and the transition to the 202 Gujarat agenda, with the gruesome Godhra carnage. In the main Teltumbde navigated how in essence the state’s actions stood in stark contrast to the lofty ideals of the constitution.

Anand finally explored and evaluated the making and fabric of fascism in India under Narendra Modi He reflected the role played by the media. He elaborated how Modi regime viewed civil society as an enemy, mercilessly framing activists and dissenters as threats to national security. Teltumde chronicled events symbolising the multidimensional assault on human rights, like Pulwama action, Citizenship amendment act, abrogating article 370 in Kashmir, criminalising human rights organisations, extensive use of colonial era laws like UPA.etc.

In his conclusion of the introduction, he diagnoses a return to the ancient Brahmanical order, stripping al human rights. He expresses fear of the silence and indifference of the Indian public on Modi’s regime and relentless propaganda that conceal the truth.

Chapters in the Volume

Kalpana Kannabiran examines how state actions over seven decades have reinforced impunity and aggression.

Ajay Gudavarthy and G Vijay navigate targeting of activists as anti-Hindu and terrorist to supress resistance of civil society.

Mihir Desai explores the Supreme Court’s failures to safeguard constitutional rights over the lats decade.

Subbhas Gatade draws similarities of the bulldozing of Muslim homes with Israeli demolitions in Gaza.

Teesta Setalvad diagnoses the reactionary character of the ‘Gujarat Model’, evaluating it as facade to engineer corporate welfare and communal polarisation.

Gautam Navlakaha recollects life serving a sentence as an undertrial prisoner, revealing how special laws are designed to undermine the principle of innocence until proven guilty, denying bail to prisoners making them languish for years.

Harsh Mander touches on the escalation of hate speech, vilifying Muslims as traitors.

Aakar Patel explores the persecution of Muslims, tracing it to the ideological roots of the BJP, describing Modi’s regime as one mercilessly promoting nationalism.

Vineeth Srivastav characterises Modi’s regime as fascist, which fuses rhetoric nationalism, religious identity and anti-elitism to trigger Hindu nationalism. He lucidly analyses Fascist underpinnings exploring how the cult of Modi, the normalisation of Hindu nationalism, the mockery of constitutional values, the power of propaganda, the dominance of mob mentality, the revival of religious myths, as national narratives and ‘bulldozer justice’, are a testament to New India’s transformation into a fascist society. This new India’s characterised by a fascist revival of a mythic past as well as a dynamic relationship of the state, corporate interests and highly mediated cultural nationalism, bolstering ultra-nationalism with crony capitalism.

Anand Teltumbde investigates the organised erosion of Dalit rights, in the backdrop of the marinization of constitutional protection.

Vernon Gonzalves chronicles the systematic extinguishing of prisoners’ rights under Modi.

Lancy Lobo describes the Violence unleashed on Christians, with anti-conversion laws enforced to attack on Christians.

Irfan Engineer covers the escalating violence and discrimination of Muslims under Modi’s rule.

Mahruk Edenwala exposes the failure of child protection laws, particularly in aftermath of NRC.

Bittu KR analyses the restriction on rights of the LGBTQIA for living freely and equally.

(The author is a freelance journalist)

Related:

Ritwik Ghatak transcended realms unexplored to reinvent art of Indian revolutionary film making

“The Cell and the Soul: A Prison Memoir” by Anand Teltumbde stands as one of the most powerful indictments of Indian democracy

Iconoclast: Path breaking biography of BR Ambedkar projects his human essence

The post Imperative for Understanding Evolution of Human Rights Paradigm: Whither Human Rights in India appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The India Hate Lab (IHL) has documented 1,318 verified in-person hate speech events targeting religious minorities across India in 2025, spanning 21 states, 1 Union Territory, and the National Capital Territory of Delhi. That is nearly four hate speech events every day. Compared to 2024, this reflects a 13% increase, and compared to 2023, a 97% increase from the 668 incidents recorded then.

The findings below have been drawn from India Hate Lab’s 2025 report and it has published key findings.

But the most disturbing insight is not only the rise in numbers. It is the pattern the numbers reveal: hate speech is no longer confined to election campaigns or sudden flashpoints. It is beginning to resemble a routine instrument of mobilisation, used repeatedly across public gatherings—political rallies, religious processions, protest marches, and nationalist events—without consistent institutional consequence.

These are verified public events; the report does not attempt to measure private conversations or all online hate.

IHL’s introduction to the 2025 report makes a crucial point: after the “unprecedented surge” in 2024, 2025 did not mark a correction. It marked consolidation. Hate speech, the report suggests, is now operating as a round-the-clock mechanism for far-right mobilisation—less like a temporary electoral tactic, and more like a continuous mode of governance and street-level politics.

BJP-ruled states remain the main theatre for hate

One of the report’s most striking findings is geographical and political. Of the 1,318 events, 1,164 incidents (88%) occurred in states governed by the BJP, either independently or through coalition partners, as well as in BJP-administered Union Territories. This is a 25% increase from the 931 incidents recorded in BJP-ruled jurisdictions in 2024.

By contrast, the report notes that seven opposition-ruled states recorded 154 hate speech events, a 34% decrease from the 234 incidents documented in those states in 2024.

The concentration is stark. The five highest-reporting jurisdictions were: Uttar Pradesh (266), Maharashtra (193), Madhya Pradesh (172), Uttarakhand (155), and Delhi (76)—together accounting for roughly two-thirds of all incidents.

This is not simply a map of hate; it is a map of political permissiveness, where repeated public incitement appears easier to organise, safer to perform, and harder to penalise.

Muslims are targeted in 98% of events; anti-Christian hate rises sharply

IHL records that 1,289 of the 1,318 events (98%) targeted Muslims—explicitly in 1,156 cases, and alongside Christians in 133 cases. This represents a nearly 12% increase from the 1,147 instances recorded in 2024.

The report also documents a troubling rise in anti-Christian hate speech: 162 incidents (about 12% of all events), reflecting a 41% increase from the 115 anti-Christian incidents recorded in 2024. Of these, Christians were explicitly targeted in 29 cases, and targeted alongside Muslims in 133 cases.

The implication is clear: while anti-Muslim incitement remains the ideological core of this ecosystem, hate against Christians is being normalised more openly and more frequently.

How hate is built: conspiracy ‘jihads’, de–humanisation, and calls to violence

A major portion of hate speech documented in 2025 relied on conspiracy narratives. The report records 656 hate speeches—nearly half—referencing “love jihad,” “land jihad,” “population jihad,” “vote jihad,” and newer variations such as “thook (spit) jihad,” “education jihad,” and “drug jihad.”

These conspiracy frames perform a consistent political function: they translate everyday anxieties into claims of organised minority aggression, and then present majoritarian retaliation—social exclusion, boycott, and violence— as “self-defence.”

The danger is not abstract. IHL records that:

• 308 speeches (23%) contained explicit calls for violence
• 136 speeches contained direct calls to arms
• 120 speeches called for social or economic boycotts (an 8% increase from 2024)
• 276 speeches called for removal or destruction of places of worship, including mosques, shrines, and churches
• 141 speeches used dehumanising language—calling minorities “termites,” “parasites,” “insects,” “pigs,” “mad dogs,” “snake-lings,” “green snakes,” and “bloodthirsty zombies.”

When such language becomes familiar in public life, it does not remain “speech”. It becomes permission—permission to harass, exclude, attack, and deny belonging.

Dangerous speeches: Maharashtra stands out

The report notes that Maharashtra recorded the highest number of “dangerous speeches”—78 incidents, up from 64 in 2024. Nearly 40% of the state’s 193 hate speech events involved explicit calls for violence—the highest proportion recorded for any state.

Among individuals delivering the most dangerous speeches, Maharashtra minister Nitesh Rane is identified as being among the top five actors issuing calls to violence.

This matters because dangerous speech is not merely a measure of “tone”; it reflects an ecosystem where the line between political mobilisation and incitement becomes increasingly thin.

Organisers and actors: a network, not outliers

IHL identifies more than 160 organisations and informal groups as organisers or co-organisers of hate speech events in 2025. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal emerge as the most frequent organisers, linked to 289 events (22%), followed by Antarrashtriya Hindu Parishad (138 events).

The report also identifies the most prolific individual hate-speech actors in 2025:

• Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami: 71 speeches
• Pravin Togadia: 46 speeches
• BJP leader Ashwini Upadhyay: 35 speeches

When chief ministers and prominent leaders appear as frequent actors in such datasets, the issue stops being about “fringe” mobilisation. It becomes a question of political signalling, where the top legitimises the bottom, and the bottom operationalises the top.

April spike: processions, backlash rallies, and rapid mobilisation

The report records that April had the highest monthly spike with 158 hate speech events, coinciding with Ram Navami processions and hate rallies organised in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.

In the 16-day period between April 22 and May 7, IHL documented 98 in-person hate speech events, indicating rapid and nationwide anti-Muslim mobilisation.

The pattern is politically significant: a terror incident becomes a trigger not for measured accountability but for public rhetoric, that collapses an entire community into a suspect population.

‘Outsider’ tropes: Rohingya and ‘Bangladeshi infiltrator’ narratives

IHL records 69 hate speech events targeting Rohingya refugees, and 192 speeches invoking the “Bangladeshi infiltrator” trope, frequently used to stigmatise Bengali-origin Muslims as foreigners.

These tropes are effective because they blur the line between citizenship and suspicion, turning identity into a permanent trial—where belonging must be constantly proved and can be constantly denied.

Social media: the multiplier of public hate

A defining feature of 2025 is the speed of amplification. Videos from 1,278 of the 1,318 events were first shared or live-streamed on social media platforms.

The breakdown is telling:

• Facebook: 942 first uploads
• YouTube: 246
• Instagram: 67
• X: 23

This confirms that the “in-person” event is no longer the endpoint. A local gathering becomes national content within minutes—clipped, circulated, and rewarded by engagement. Platform policies against hate speech exist, but the report’s documentation shows how digital impunity persists in practice.

It begins with words—and survives through institutional hesitation

The democratic danger here is not only moral; it is institutional. A society can endure hateful individuals. What it cannot safely endure is predictable public incitement without predictable legal consequence.

When hate speech becomes routine, it creates two realities: one in the Constitution, and one on the streets. The first promises equality and dignity. The second teaches communities to accept humiliation, exclusion, and vulnerability as ordinary facts of life.

The IHL report does not ask whether hate exists. It records what happens when hate is allowed to become ordinary—and how quickly the ordinary can become dangerous.

If hate speech has become routine, the response must become routine too: prompt FIRs where applicable, platform enforcement, and transparent public accountability.

The report may be read here.

(The author is a lawyer and Constitutional Law Researcher based in New Delhi)

Related:

Rituals of Fear, Politics of Hate: How AHP’s national network rewrote the boundaries of democracy and citizenship

Free Speech in India 2025: What the Free Speech Collective report reveals about a year of silencing

The ‘Shastra Poojan’ Project: How the ritual of weapon worship is being recast as a tool of power and hate propaganda

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