Attacks on Hindus and Hindu Dharma, both in Bharat and overseas, are frequent and unrelenting. In many regions of the world, this persecution is like a genocide slowly unfolding before our eyes. For decades, the world has ignored the actual depth and breadth of these attacks, driven by disturbing anti-Hindu bigotry. From murders, forced conversions, land grabs, assault on festivals, desecration of temples and murtis, hate speech, and sexual violence to institutionalized & legal discrimination, Hindus are facing an increasing assault on their very existence along with an unprecedented Hindu hatred.

In this weekly summary for the period from 14 April to 20 April 2024, we hope to provide a snapshot of such crimes and hopefully awaken more people around the world to this human rights crisis:

Bharat

1) A playschool in Uttarakhand’s Roorkee organized an event on Eid al-Fitr where small children were taught how to read namaz. The videos of the event became viral on social media. The students’ parents filed a police complaint and accused the institution of coercing the impressionable minds of young kids. However, the school has refuted the allegations.

2) A man named Vipin Verma has filed a police complaint against his wife Shehzadi, who entrapped him into her love trap by pretending to be a Hindu woman. As per reports, Shehzadi forged documents and assumed the identity of ‘Naina Verma’ before getting married to Vipin. The incident took place in Uttar Pradesh’s (UP) Meerut city. According to the victim, she had forcibly circumcised his 10-year-old son during a trip to Saharanpur.

3) Five youths have been arrested for the forcible conversion and gang rape of a minor girl in Uttar Pradesh’s Bahraich. The incident was reported from the Hardi area of the district where a SC (‘Dalit’) minor girl staying in her grandmother’s house was kidnapped, converted, and gang-raped by the accused. The accused — Anees, Saddam, Mohiuddeen, Aleem and Baura — were taken into custody, and legal proceedings have been initiated against them under sections 363, 342, 376-D, and 506 of IPC.

4) Amid the election campaign and Bengali New Year festivities, Hindus were attacked in West Bengal’s (WB) Murshidabad district. A Shiva temple was also attacked. Shiva Lingam was vandalised and villagers alleged that Islamists urinated inside the temple. 

5) Vikas Bagga (also known as Vikas Prabhakar) was murdered by two unidentified men at his confectionary shop in Punjab’s Patiala city.

6) In a shocking incident, a 72-year-old Muslim man, Sheik Miravali, has been accused of assaulting an 11-year-old Hindu ST girl in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh. The victim, who resides with her mother’s elder sister, was reportedly assaulted twice by the elderly Muslim man, who is also the grandfather of her playmate.

7) An incident of the brutal rape of a Hindu minor by Mohammad Imran Daraj was reported from Mumbai’s suburban area of Mira Bhayander. Mira Road’s Navghar Police registered an FIR against Daraj on 14 April. However, it has come to light that the crime occurred on 7 April, and Daraj had threatened the child not to reveal it to anyone.

8) The Bombay High Court stressed to the police the importance of maintaining law and order during the upcoming Ram Navami rally in the Malad-Malwani area, which has a significant Muslim population. “Ensure routes are changed…If there are law and order problems, you will face problems,” said the Bombay HC order on the route outside mosques.

9) In a deeply distressing incident, a woman fell victim to a heartless fraud orchestrated by an Islamist man who deceitfully posed as someone else on a matrimonial website. Mohammed Shahjahan, masquerading under the identity of Mukund Nair, allegedly manipulated and befriended a divorced Hindu woman, exploiting her trust.

10) Hindu organizations demanded an FIR against the Islamists after a video surfaced showing the Islamists raising provocative slogans after Eid Namaz in Unhel of Madhya Pradesh’s (MP) Ujjain district. They have warned of protests if action is not taken against those responsible.

11) A Malayalam TV reporter tried to peddle the idea that beef is common for the Hindu festival feast of Vishu Sadya.

12) In a shocking incident in UP’s Bareilly district, 25-year-old Shri Krishna committed suicide by consuming poison after his father converted to Islam. Reports say that a Maulana used to visit the victim’s house and brainwashed his father to accept Islam. Krishna was upset with his father’s conversion to Islam.

13) A case has been registered against 21 people from the Muslim community for pelting stones at a procession taken out on the occasion of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar’s birth anniversary on Sunday (April 14). Seven people have been arrested so far in this case.

14) In a harrowing ordeal in UP’s Jaunpur, a young Hindu girl narrowly escaped abduction thanks to the swift action of concerned villagers and authorities. The incident unfolded as the victim, a college student, found herself targeted by harassment from Islamist Mohammed Sultan, a known troublemaker in the area.

15) Saffron flags put up on the occasion of Ram Navami were removed after the Hinduphobic Congress filed a complaint citing a violation of the Model Code of Conduct.

16) Islamists allegedly attacked a peaceful Ram Navami Shobhayatra in WB’s Shaktipur of Murshidabad district. Islamists threw stones at the Ram Bhakts from the houses and from the rooftops.  

17) A case of kidnapping, rape, forced religious conversion and marriage involving Islamist Sabir and a 17-year-old SC (Scheduled Caste) girl has emerged from Rajasthan’s Alwar district.

18) In a shocking incident, stalker Faizal Kondikoppa stabbed a student to death in a college in Karnataka’s Hubballi. The deceased student was identified as Neha, daughter of the Hubballi-Dharwad City Corporation corporator Niranjan Hiremath, of the Congress.

19) Tension erupted in a Christian missionary school in Telangana after the administration objected to students wearing religious attire, leading to vandalism of the school. The incident took place in the Mother Teresa School of Luxettipet in Kannepalli village in the Mancherial district after some students arrived wearing the ‘Hanuman Deeksha dress’.

20) In Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri, a disturbing case has emerged involving the disappearance of a Hindu girl, Shweta Mandal (name changed), allegedly trapped in a relationship with Mohammad Basit. Based on the reports from Sudarshan News, in Sambhaji Nagar another distressing narrative unfolded as a Hindu girl fell victim to religious coercion and familial abuse in an interfaith relationship with Islamist Taiyab Pathan, masquerading as Samir Patel.

21) In recent years, the rise of religious Islamic extremism has cast a dark shadow over the lives of many individuals, particularly women, in various parts of Bharat. Two such disturbing incidents, one in Andhra Pradesh and another in UP serve as poignant reminders of the challenges faced by Hindu communities in the face of radicalization and religious intolerance.

22) In the Chikkabettahalli area of Bengaluru, three youths named Binayak, D Pavan Kumar, and Rahul were travelling in their car with a Bhagwa (saffron) flag attached and chanting Jai Shri Ram. At this moment, two Islamist youths on bikes intercepted them, causing a confrontation. The Muslim youth obstructed and harassed the Hindu youths, with one of them explicitly stating, “No Jai Shri Ram, only Allah Hu Akbar.” They threatened the Hindu youths against chanting “Jai Shri Ram” and initiated a physical altercation.

23) Amidst the ongoing Navratri festival, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s decision to demolish two temples in West Delhi has sparked outrage among local Hindus. The move, which was reportedly ordered by AAP minister Atishi, has drawn criticism from Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) VK Saxena, who stayed the demolition action ahead of Ram Navami.

24) YouTuber Rohit Kumar was assaulted for singing a song in praise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Karnataka’s Mysuru. He was also subjected to humiliating actions. The incident took place near a government guest house where some people brutally attacked Rohit, who is a resident of Mellahalli village, for penning a song lauding the prime minister.

25) A Janmabhumi report from Thrissur, Kerala, showed police officers wearing boots entering the circumambulation path of Vadakkumnathan temple. The High Court has ordered that footwear should not be worn inside the temple during Pooram. It was during this period that the police officers violated the order.

Pakistan

Abduction, rape, forced conversion, and marriage of minor Hindu girls are common occurrences in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. At least 1000 minority girls suffer such sex slavery every year in Sindh province alone. Apart from this, Pakistani Hindus face systemic and institutionalized discrimination and neglect, such as frequent attacks on Hindu temples, demonization of education curriculum, police and judicial antipathy, denial of fundamental rights, and even untouchability. This latest instance of the brutal rape and murder of a Bheel woman in Pakistan is yet another proof of the pitiable condition of Hindu minorities in Pakistan.

1) In a move stirring controversy and drawing condemnation, a historically significant Hindu temple situated near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has been razed to the ground. The temple, known as the ‘Khyber Temple,’ once stood as a symbol of religious heritage in the border town of Landi Kotal Bazaar in the Khyber district.

Bangladesh

Attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh are relentless and designed to cleanse the religious minority from the country gradually. According to a study by Prof. Abul Barakat of Dhaka University, no Hindus will be left in Bangladesh by 2050 due to systemic and institutionalized persecution. Temple desecration, land grabbing, mob attacks after false blasphemy charges, rape/forced conversion of women, and hate speech are tools used to intimidate and drive Hindus out.

1) Suchana Rani Nath and Purna Rani Nath, sisters from Daudpur village under Dakshin Surma Upazila of Sylhet district, were converted to Islam by their teacher. Another case of Love Jihad and conversion has come from Mithaganj of Patuakhali district. Proma Rani has become a victim of Love Jihad. She later converted to Islam and married a Muslim youth. 

2) A fresh case of attack and Murti vandalism has been reported from the Gaibandha district. Local Hindus said that the Puja of Basanti Mata was going on in the temple. Religious songs were being played on the loudspeakers. Some Islamists objected to it. They threatened to stop the loudspeakers. However, the local Hindus didn’t agree with them, following which the temple was attacked and murti vandalised.

3) Islamists allegedly put fire to a Kali Mata temple in Krishna Nagar village under Madhukhali  Upazila. After the incident, locals got angry and allegedly lynched two Islamists. 

Most hate crimes are driven by anti-Hindu bigotry encoded in certain religious teachings and political ideologies. While the anti-Hindu hate in Islamic countries is evident, there is another subtler form of anti-Hindu sentiment within institutions and the public sphere of ostensibly secular states (like India) that provides an enabling environment for Hinduphobia and hate crimes. This subtle, everyday discrimination can be missed unless one studies prevailing laws and patterns. The gradual ban on firecrackers during Diwali is a good example – it might seem pollution-related on the surface. Still, the double standards at play become apparent when one looks at the larger picture of restrictions on Hindu festivals and the lack of sound reasoning behind the ban.

We request all readers to share other anti-Hindu hate crimes that we might have missed in this period in the comments below or by emailing [email protected]. We also solicit support in maintaining the Hindu human rights tracker database.