Hindus under attack: a weekly roundup of hate crimes, persecution, and discrimination against Hindus

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 5 March to 11 March 2023, we hope to provide a snapshot of such crimes and hopefully awaken more people around the world to this human rights crisis:

Bharat

1) On the evening of Sunday (March 5), clashes between Hindus and Muslims erupted in the Purwa Ilahi Baksh area in Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut district, over the ritual of Holi Dahan, ahead of Holi that was to be celebrated on March 8. According to media reports, stones were pelted and glass bottles were hurled between two groups. On what triggered the violence, several news agencies reported that Muslim youths mocked two Hindu men seeking donations for the ceremony by comparing it to begging. The Muslims also allegedly kicked the ritualistic wooden pyre that is set up and lit on Holika Dahan, symbolising the burning of Holika.

2) A 16-year-old Hindu girl was shot on Monday, 6 March, in northeast Delhi’s Subhash Park of Nand Nagri area, by 19-year-old Qasim and he has been arrested by the police. The girl received a bullet injury on her shoulder and is currently in hospital. The incident took place in the Kodi colony of northeast Delhi’s Nand Nagri area on Monday night.

3) Just a day before the festival of Holi, food delivery app Swiggy’s purported ad has sparked outrage on Twitter. The billboard was taken down after the backlash. Swiggy faced criticism over their ‘Holi egg’ billboard advertisements.

4) In a barbaric incident of religious intolerance, on Tuesday in Marpalli village, Regode Mandal, Medak district, Telangana, a man identified as Anjaiah was set on fire by one Mohammed Shabbir just because the victim threw colours on him. According to reports, Anjaiah was immediately shifted to the Sangareddy government hospital where his condition is stated to be critical.

5) On March 8, Wednesday, the celebration of Holi was disrupted in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, as a woman belonging to the Muslim community threw brooms and stones at a group of Hindus who were singing songs and playing Holi in the area. The incident reportedly happened in Jogiana Mohalla of Ganj Moradabad in UP.

6) Unknown miscreants entered an ancient Shiva temple in Hathras on Wednesday evening and set the murti of Parvati on fire and destroyed it.

7) A case of a Hindu girl being threatened by a Muslim youth to marry him has emerged in the Kannauj district of Uttar Pradesh. It is alleged that a youth named Mohammad Saqlain used to do obscene acts with a girl student studying in class 9th in Kashiram Colony of the Chhibramau police station area. When she refused, Saqlain and his family members assaulted her and threatened to kill her.

8) Mohammad Abdul of Godhra repeatedly raped a girl of his daughter’s age and shared the video with her fiancé to ruin her wedding.

9) Vadakkumpatt Raseela, a notorious lady alcoholic, desecrated the Illikunnu Sree Muthappan Kavu near Thalassery, Kannur. She arrived unable to stand straight, pestered priests, abused the Bhagwan, and casually left.

10) Two Christian men identified as Rajat Kumar Shah and Abhijeet Mesih were held for forceful religious conversions in UP’s Kanpur after protests by VHP.

11) Uddhav Thackeray is at it again, displaying his Hinduphobia by using the ‘gaumutra’ jibe in the guise of targeting the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party). He was speaking at the Golibar Maidan in Ratnagiri’s Khed where he is currently touring.

12) A video showing some Muslim women consuming meat in Thanjavur Brihadeeswarar temple has surfaced on social media. Alert devotees confronted them and sent them away with the help of the police. Allowing non-Hindus inside temples in the name of encouraging tourism has resulted in the desecration of such sacred spaces.

13) A disturbing video from Delhi’s notorious Jahangirpuri area recently went viral on social media, where a boy was seen being thrashed badly with a belt and then sexually assaulted by some youth. It was later confirmed that the victim was a minor Hindu boy while his attackers were Muslim.

14) Bharat Matrimony’s latest ad peddles propaganda against Holi.

15) Dr Sumedha Sharma was stabbed to death by her boyfriend Johar Ganai in the Janipur area of Jammu city’s outskirts on the day before Holi, March 7.

15) In a display of arrogance and complete disregard for temple rules, Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer Reshma Lakhani forcibly entered Jagannath Mandir. It must be highlighted that Jagannath Mandir prohibits the entry of non-Hindus.

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) On March 6, at least 15 Hindu students were injured after Islamists of Islami Jamiat Tulba (IJT) attacked them for celebrating Holi inside Punjab University, Lahore. IJT is a radical Islamic student organisation. As per reports, around 30 students gathered to celebrate Holi.

2) A senior dermatologist Prof. Dr Dharam Dev Rathi was brutally murdered on Holi night by his driver Hanif Leghari.

3) In yet another example of how Hindus are persecuted in Pakistan, a young girl Chanda who converted to Islam and married a Muslim man Junaid Ghori, has now been abandoned by her Muslim husband.

4) In yet another disturbing incident from Pakistan, a minor girl belonging to the minority community named Komal has gone missing from her home in the Ghotki town of Sindh province. The family members suspect that she may have been kidnapped, and have reported the matter to the local police station.

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) On March 5, Islamist fanatics beheaded a vigraha of Maa Ganga in Tagorgoan’s Tagorrani (Tweet archived here)

2) Islamists attacked a Hindu temple in Garinabari’s Goyalpara of Panchaghar and beheaded Maa Kali’s murti (Tweet archived here).

3) A Hindu family’s land was grabbed by Raseda Begum, Mohammad Uzzal, and Mohammad Khokan in Barishal’s Uzirpur (Tweet archived here).

World

1) Amid a series of high-profile hate attacks and defacements of Hindu temples in Australia, it has now come to light that the Swaminarayan Temple in Perth has received a threat call from Khalistan supporters.

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 dropping an email to [email protected] We also solicit support in maintaining the Hindu human rights tracker database.