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 2 July to 8 July 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) A new case of love jihad has come to light in Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh. The accused young man Aqib Javed first befriended a young Hindu woman, developed a relationship with her, and then later he started pressurising her to change her religion to Islam.

2) In connection with the attack on a Gaurakshak in Nanded, Maharashtra Police arrested 5 of the 10 accused persons identified as Salim Qureshi, Babu Thekedar, Asif Hasan, Salim Autowala, Anis, Shoaib Sheikh, Ejaz, Sohail Sheikh, Moin, Sanjay Gaikwad.

3) Gulfaam murdered shopkeeper Maheshchand Jatav over Rs 10 in UP’s (Uttar Pradesh) Mainpuri.

4) Last week, a Seva Bharati Ambulance was attacked in the Kannur district of Kerala. Seva Bharati is a non-governmental organization (NGO) inspired by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) that works among the economically weaker sections of Bharatiya society, including Janjatiya communities. The incident took place in Koodali, in Thalassery taluk. Several people, including the relatives of the deceased in the ambulance, were injured. Vipin and Abhijith who were in the ambulance were hurt in the beating. Seva Bharati accused CPM workers of being behind the attack.

5) In what appears to be yet another case of a Hindu child being brainwashed, groomed and lured to run away from home by a Muslim adult, a 17-year-old girl student along with her Muslim teacher has gone missing in Sri Dungargarh town, Bikaner district, Rajasthan.

6) In Kerala, YouTuber VK Baiju was arrested for pointing out vegetarian hotel ‘Aryas’ with Ganesh Murti was owned by a Muslim man.

7) Salman was arrested by the Delhi Police for raping a 16-year-old girl after spiking her cold drink. The Police added that the accused was known to the complainant as both of them worked together in a toy factory in Delhi.

8) A Muslim man was taken to task for urinating near a Chhatrapati Shivaji statue in Gajwel town of Telangana’s Siddipet district but the media made him into a victim.

9) As the Muslim population in Devbhoomi Uttarakhand increases, Hindus in the state are being harassed and attacked by Muslims. In the latest instance, a Muslim mob is reported to have raised ‘Allah hu Akbar’ slogans after Hindus protested against the molestation of a Hindu girl by two Muslim youths.

10) A Hindu girl was gang-raped by two Muslim men who lured her with the promise of helping her get a house under the PM Awas Yojana. The animals didn’t just stop there – when the victim asked them for some water, they urinated in her mouth. They made a video of the entire act and threatened her to keep quiet.

11) Ex-ACP Riyazuddin Ghiyasuddin Deshmukh claimed his religious sentiments were ‘hurt’ after TV9Marathi calls Mughal tyrant Aurangzeb “Aurangya”.

12) Jaipur police in Rajasthan arrested Sohail Khan for allegedly kidnapping, raping and trying to forcibly convert a minor girl to Islam. The accused was arrested and produced before a court on Monday (July 3) where the magistrate sent him to judicial custody.

13) A case of cheating and physical abuse of a young married woman by her gym trainer has come up in the Surat city of Gujarat. The incident came to the fore on June 27, when the victim Preeti (name changed) filed a complaint against her fitness trainer Kauser Ali Shabbir Ali Kubbawala with the Salabatpura police, accusing him of cheating, rape and unnatural sex. Based on the complaint, the Surat police arrested the accused and sent him to jail.

14) Islamists humiliated & assaulted 2 SC men in MP’s (Madhya Pradesh) Shivpuri. The accused blackened their faces, garlanded them with shoes, and made them eat filth.

15) A brutal case of abduction and gang rape has come to light from Assam’s Hailakandi district. Five Muslim youths allegedly abducted two minor Hindu girls in front of the school and gang-raped them. One girl died and another is critical, undergoing treatment. 

16) Days after Bakrid, an Islamic festival observed on June 28 this year, a series of videos are emerging where Hindu students can be seen offering Islamic prayers. The first video came out from a private school in Gujarat, leading to the suspension of the principal and the other video came from a private school in Karnataka.

17) Musician Kannan Bhasi accused Alappuzha Kreupasanam meditation centre of forced Christian conversion.

18) Navsari police in Gujarat apprehended a Muslim man for raping and blackmailing a Hindu girl for nearly five years. The accused who is identified as 37-year-old Asim Nizam Shaikh, a resident of Khergam, was arrested in Vasai (Mumbai suburb) in Maharashtra, in a case of love jihad, according to a statement from the police.

19) In what can be termed a Pakistanization of India two brothers, Gaurang and Buddhu Mandal, were forcibly converted to Islam in WB (West Bengal).

20) Jetpur, located in the Rajkot district of Gujarat, has recently witnessed a startling case involving the conversion of Hindu youth. According to reports, Ashish Goswami, a resident of Jetpur, allegedly embraced Islam after establishing contact with a Muslim girl from Bangladesh through the social media platform Instagram.

21) Lucky Khan (19) and his friend were arrested for abduction, gang rape, and forced conversion to Islam of a minor on her way to school.

22) A unique case of love jihad has come to the fore from Hardoi, Uttar Pradesh. A youth named Roshan Ali, originally a resident of Hardoi in UP, pretended to quit Islam and embrace Hinduism to trap a Hindu woman. He married her as per Hindu rituals in a Hindu Temple and then forced her to convert to Islam and perform Nikah.

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) One month after the abduction, police recovered a minor Hindu girl Aishi Saha(13) from Dhaka National Medical College and Hospital on 3rd July night. Police also arrested a Muslim youth named Kamrul Islam(24).

2) At least three persons including the brother of the local Union Parishad (UP) chairman were accused of gang-raping a woman belonging to the minority Hindu community and extorting money by threatening to spread the video on social media. The incident took place at the Paikpara village of Hajipur Union in Kulaura upazila under Moulvibazar District on the night of June 29.

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.