Categories
Communalism Hate Speech Politics

Rising tide of hate speech marks India’s general assembly election campaigns

BJP’s top leaders while campaigning for elections, invoked anti-Muslim tropes, violent imagery, and conspiracy theories

As elections and voting concluded on June 1 and the country awaited the final results on June 4 with bated breath, a closer look at BJP’s electoral campaign revealed that hate speech, dog whistling, and communally charged rhetoric remained prevalent. As part of its Hate Watch segment, Sabrang India and Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) have collated the top incidents of hate speech in the month of May 2024.

Solapur, Maharashtra

Another serial offender has raked Maharashtra with his hate speech once again on May 4.

BJP MLA from Telangana’s Ghoshamahal constituency in his speech asked the state’s chief minister Eknath Shinde to not campaign or ask Muslims for votes, and instead to ask from those who ‘save Gaumata.’ He also further called for not buying halal certified goods and demanded bulldozers to start demolitions in Maharashtra as well.

“We had heard of land jihad, and love jihad. Now we hear of vote jihad.’ Referring to Salman Khurshid’s comment for voters to commit vote jihad, he goes further, “There was a time, when ‘you’ did a lot of jihad, now is not that time anymore because if you do jihad now, Modiji will hammer you (thok denge).”

Consequently, according to Siasat News, Singh along with Nitesh Rane were booked by the police for their speech on May 7th.

Ayanagar, Delhi

New Delhi’s Ayanagar reportedly saw a communally charged speech by BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP Rakesh Sinha who spoke of ‘chopping off fingers’ of those who ‘point fingers’ at Ram.

“I promise you that after 2024, the mosque from Kashi Vishwanath will be done for. The mosque in Mathura will also get done with. We are well aware of how to chop off the fingers of those pointing fingers at Bhagwan Ram, Bhagwan Krishna and Bhagwan Shiva’s temples. The incoming Narendra Modi government will remove the shadow that Mughals have cast over our Bhagwan Krishna’s Mandir after returning in 2024.”

Nanded, Maharashtra

On May 4, Kajal Hindustani, a social media influencer, gave an incendiary speech, urging the Hindu community to do ‘love and land jihad.’

In the name of secularism, you are being played. Your brother is sitting like a butcher and is chopping you. In nine states and in many districts, Hindus have become a minority. After railway and the defence, Muslims own the most land. Our women, temples, land and gau mata are not safe. Nor is the Hindu safe in this country. You have only one nation. Other Hindus are running to India from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh. Indian government has promised them citizenship. But where will you go? The Hindu is running from here, from Assam, Bengal etc. Till when and where will you run? How much will you run? Our jihadi brother, he is dreaming of Ghazwa e Hind. What is Ghazwa e Hind? Making India an Islamic nation. They are working according to a terrorist, Talibani ideology. What are we doing? We are only raising slogans. Till when will you stay like this, watching your sister get targeted by ‘love-jihad?’ You get prepared, you too do ‘love-land jihad’, do religious conversions.”

Navneet Rana gave a hate-filled speech on May 9 while campaigning for the BJP’s Madhavi Latha who is contesting from Hyderabad.

She was speaking to Asaduddin Owaisi and his brother Akbaruddin Owaisi, “The younger brother says ‘remove the police for 15 minutes so that we can show them what we can do’. I want to tell the younger brother that it might take you 15 minutes, but for us it will only take 15 seconds. it will take us all of 15 seconds if we come to it.”

Similarly, on May 11 in Maharashtra’s Aurangabad she made the following speech.

“We don’t need 15 minutes to finish you up. We can do it in 15 seconds. I am not scared of any ‘Pakistan ki aulad’.” Pakistan ki aulaad is a slur used to refer to Muslims in India. He continues saying, “Ayodhya was just a glimpse, Kashi and Mathura are left.”

Kalkaji, Delhi

Notorious offender and BJP Leader Kapil Mishra, who shot to fame for his hate speech after the northeast Delhi riots for saying “Desh ke Gaddaron ko, Goli maaro saalon ko.”, is once again in the news for giving highly charged hate speech.

If one lane has two houses, one man has two kids one has 12. Allah ki dene” The crowd laughs, “Now the government says to combine property of both, and give equally to both. Now who will get the most money?’ The crowd jeers. “Are they not giving 10,000 rupees to laundya (slur), to Rohingyas. Now, you have a look at any photo of any Rohingya woman, have you seen? Four kids in the side, fifth in her hand, and the sixth – ?” The crowd jeers that the sixth is in her ‘stomach. Is it not the case? These Rohingya and Bangladeshi are taking money for going to school and giving to those who go to madrasa. Will we let that happen? Also, secondly, they will take the reservation given to Dalits, OBCs, and Adivasi and give it to Muslims. Will we let that happen?”

Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh

On May 23, Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh witnessed a speech charged with communal tones by BJP MP and Minister of Information and Broadcasting of India, Anurag Singh Thakur. He was speaking about alleged “Muslim appeasement” by Congress. The phrase is often used as a bogey by right-wing supporters as a dog whistle.

“Congress will give reservations to Muslims and they will distribute property amongst people having more wives and children.”

Kolhapur, Maharashtra.

On May 20, Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s General Secretary Surendra Jain’s speech similarly made a charged speech filled with conspiracy theories directed against Muslims. He made the speech in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur, saying “Wherever Hindus are a minority, they are in danger. Fear mongers about Muslims and Christians sending money from abroad to convert Hindus in India. Hindus are being tricked into Christianity. We are under attack from Muslims and Christians.”

He further spoke of a united ‘Akhand Bharat,’ invoking countries such as Germany, Israel and Vietnam, and demanding that Hindu land in Pakistan and Bangladesh be “brought back.”

Deoghar, Jharkhand

On May 22, repeated hate speech giver, Himanta Biswa Sarma reportedly spoke in Jharkhand and gave a communally charged speech. He said, “Assam has suffered due to infiltrators and Rohingya. The Infiltrators consist of about 36% of the population, they have come from Bangladesh and settled in Assam. In 10 years, Jharkhand will be like Assam as well (with regards to the migrant population), the demography will change. It’s under the rule of the opposition that most infiltration happens.”

He further spoke about Kashi and Mathura as well, “We need 400 seats to build these temples; Madrasa & Mulla. It’s not our job to make Mullas. I shut down about 700 Madrasas in one day. Hemant Soren allows namaz in the state assembly, so if that happened then we should also be able to recite the Hanuman Chalisa. They are giving Fridays off, we have to stop it like I did in 12 districts of Assam. Vote for us to stop infiltration, build the Krishna Janmabhoomi Temple and the Gyanvapi Mandir. Vote for a united Kashmir and vote to shut down all these Madrasas.”

Palghar, Maharashtra

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath further sparked controversy as he claimed that the Azaan (call to prayer) will disappear from mosques in the next five years. He made the speech in Palghar, Maharashtra.

According to The Observer Post, he said, “Today you must be seeing that all the encroachments in Uttar Pradesh have been removed. Now, no one even thinks about riots there. Now no one offers prayers on the streets in Uttar Pradesh. Even the loudspeakers from the mosques have been taken down. In the next five years, you will see that people will forget that these things even existed.” The report states that a complaint against this statement has been filed at the ECI.

On May 29, the chief minister of UP again made a speech laced with communal sentiments, talking about how ‘Muslims will implement personal law,’ “They will implement Muslim personal law. They will become a Taliban regime. Women will have to wear Burqa and they won’t be able to go to school or markets. They want to bring back triple talaq and they want to implement the sharia law. This won’t happen under the BJP. ‘They’ will implement an inheritance tax and through it will X-ray your assets and distribute them among Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Afghan, and Rohingya infiltrators. Aurangzeb’s soul has entered Congress, and now the Inheritance tax is the new jizya. Let’s keep Aurangzeb buried.”

Sangli, Maharashtra

T Raja Singh once again made an inflammatory speech. Singh said, “Shoot in the chest of people who do ‘love-jihad’.” He also encouraged young Hindus to learn how to use weapons and to not hold fear for killing a “love jihadi.”

The event was reportedly organised by Sakal Hindu Samaj.

Mustafabad, Delhi

In Northeast Delhi which is seeing a contest between incumbent BJP leader and singer Manoj Tiwari and Congress’ Kanhaiya Kumar, Kapil Mishra once again gave a speech on May 21, alluding to finding an “Afzal” in “every home”, and how PM Modi will “treat these diseases.”

“They used to ask “how many Afzals will you kill”, and that “you will find Afzal in each household.” Well, from wherever Afzal comes out, we will enter the house and kill him. Till when will they come out? They have stopped now.”

He further adds that the people have only seen a “trailer” and a “calm” Narendra Modi, who was laying the “foundation” for removing “termites.” In the coming third term, he argues, all these “diseases will be treated.”

Kendrapara, Odisha

On May 26, Himanta Biswa Sarma once again gave a communally charged speech in Odisha, saying, “Sri Ram Janambhumi has happened, but in Mathura, our Krishna Janambhumi, the Shahi Eidgah stands at that place. In Kashi, our Vishvanath Baba’s temple had Gyanvapi Temple, now it continues to remain Gyanvapi Mosque. Give Modji 400 seats and across, we have to build Krishna Janamibhumi and Gyanvapi Temple.”

On May 28, Sarma made similar such speeches at Bhadrak and Kakatpur in Odisha, arguing for the need to stop Muslim men from marrying four wives and implementing the Uniform Civil Code.

Ballia, Uttar Pradesh

On May 29 in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh, Home Minister Amit Shah similarly made a speech charging Congress of ‘Muslim appeasement’, “Electricity was only available during Ramzan, but now it is available for 18 hours a day. The Congress party wants to give reservations meant for Dalits, Adivasis, and Scheduled Castes to Muslims, as they have already done in Karnataka and Hyderabad. We will never allow this to happen.”

Related:

Spewing hate, slurring Muslims: an unchecked decade-long diatribe by Bharatiya Janata Party?

Hindutva groups seen holding weapons training camps and rallies in the past month in 4 BJP-ruled states

Repeat offender among suspects in lynching of Muslim man in Gujarat

Series of poll violations by ruling BJP. Inaction by ECI says Independent Panel

‘Inflammatory, communal’: Modi inciting hate in Jharkhand, poll official told

Bombay HC orders removal of derogatory posts “baselessly” attacking Malabar Gold, calls Kajal Shingala’s call to boycott the brand “prima facie defamatory”

 

Exit mobile version