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 22 October to 28 October 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 government primary school principal in Lucknow was suspended for allowing a group of students to offer namaz on the school campus. “Offering namaz on school premises is against departmental guidelines,” a district-level education officer said.

2) A Pakistan-origin man was arrested in Gujarat for spying in Bharat 17 years after getting citizenship. He allegedly sent malware to defense personnel.

3) SFI goons assaulted and locked up a female ABVP worker in a Kerala college room for wearing a rakhi.

4) Shilpa, who was in ‘love’ with a Muslim youth Shakeel, murdered her husband, Sunil, with the help of Shakeel and his friend Yadvindra. The police arrested the woman, Shakeel, and his friend Yadvindra in case of murder. Investigations indicate this is yet another case of love jihad.

5) Thiruvambady Devaswom Board sought permission from Cochin Devaswom Board to sell valuable assets to settle debts. They wanted consent to sell three Thiuvambady Sri Krishna temple properties in Thrissur. As the temple is under the control of the Cochin Devaswom Board, their permission is needed to sell the temple land.

6) Hindu organizations intervened to prevent a Muslim man who is a father of four children from marrying a 21-year-old Hindu girl at the request of the girl’s brother, thereby preventing another case of love jihad. Reportedly, the man’s first wife also had no objection to the marriage and wanted a co-wife.

7) A person named Nasir Hussain, born Rambabu Tiwari, was arrested for threatening to kill his parents if they didn’t give him the demanded money and transfer property in his name. The Hindu youth belonging to Uttar Pradesh’s (UP) Banda accepted Islam after being brainwashed by watching YouTube. Father Pawan Tiwari said, “Muslims living in the village have converted my son to Islam,” and added that this was done due to property reasons.

8) Tricolour allegedly banned at Chepauk stadium amid Pakistan vs Afghanistan match. The ‘knowledgeable’ Chennai crowd appeared in green jerseys supporting Pakistan. Tamil Nadu has been at the forefront of news headlines in recent times, becoming the center of attention thanks to a series of contentious issues. Initially, it was for the controversial actions of the police, perceived by some as infringing on people’s freedom of speech. This was followed by a minister’s call for the eradication of Sanathana Dharma, sparking significant debate. A member of the Congress party created a stir by publicly expressing their desire for Pakistan’s victory in the ICC World Cup 2023.

9) Hinduphobic Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Swami Prasad Maurya is known for making rabid anti-Hindu controversial statements to remain in the limelight. Recently, he said that those demanding a Hindu Rashtra are ‘enemies’ of the nation.

10) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on October 23 slammed Congress leader Digvijaya Singh’s remark of ‘natak-nautanki’ (drama) about ‘Kanya Pujan’ and asked Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi to clear Congress’ stand on the matter.

11) Encroachers attacked a goshala in Andhra Pradesh, injuring the priest and temple staff.

12) During a Devi Jagran in the Basti district of Uttar Pradesh (UP), a Muslim girl climbed onto the stage and raised slogans of Islam Zindabad. Furthermore, the girl also threw a black cloth on the vigraha of Devi Maa and the bhajan singer. This incident caused anger in the Hindu Samaj.

13) Islamic radical elements pelted stones in the Durga Murti Visarjan procession in West Bengal. The incident happened at Amdol village under the jurisdiction of Murarai Police Station of Birbhum district. Later, a huge police force controlled the situation.  

14) A case of love jihad with a Hindu girl from Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut has come to light where a Muslim man named Haroon adopted a Hindu identity to exploit her. He tricked the victim into falling into a relationship with him and raped her. The accused, who is a resident of Narheda, has been taken into custody following a complaint by her. The police have registered a case, and an investigation is underway.

15) A shocking case of Love Jihad has come to the fore in Surat, Gujarat. A 15-year-old girl from Gujarat’s Surat, who had gone to meet a Muslim youth she met through social media, was kidnapped by him and taken to Maharashtra. The family of the victim reported this matter to the police, and after that, an aggressive search operation was initiated, and she was successfully rescued.

16) At least five people were injured in a violent clash between police and revelers over the playing of DJ music after the prescribed time during the immersion of Devi Durga’s murtis in the Balasore district of Odisha.

17) Kerala police arrested three SDPI members for allegedly attacking RSS workers returning home after attending a Dusshera rally in Karunagapalli in the Kollam district of Kerala. The accused were identified as 26-year-old Naufal, a resident of Karunagapally Thazhava; 24-year-old Yasim of Kulasekharapuram Siya Mansil and 23-year-old Ajmal, a resident of the Thazhava village in Kollam. The victims were identified as Akshay Kumar, Madhun Lal, and Kiran, all residents of the Punnamkulam town in the Thrissur district.

18) Stone pelting was reported from Bihar’s Saran during the immersion of Durga Murti. Five persons were injured in this incident in the Nayi Bazar area under the Bhagwan Bazar police station in the district. Some murtis of the Devi were also damaged in the incident.

19) Arabic food Shawarma cost another Hindu life in Kerala. Rahul Nair (23), who ate shawarma, was in critical condition on a ventilator and died on 25 October.

20) DMK spokesperson TKS Elangovan has criticized the consecration ceremony of the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya, suggesting that history, particularly the Babri Masjid, has been replaced with mythology, and he referred to Bhagwan Ram as a myth.

21) Muslim parties called Israel and Bharat ‘terrorist states’ during the protest on the attack on Gaza in Tamil Nadu.

22) RJD MLA Fateh Bahadur Singh has stirred controversy by saying that Devi Durga is an imaginary character in a story.

23) The Durga Visarjan procession was attacked, and devotees were abused as it passed by Mohammad Bashir’s house because the gulal fell on his son Mohammad Bhura.

24) The Hindu devotees participating in the procession of Maa Durga immersion passing by Mohammad Bashir’s house were first abused, and when they protested, they were beaten up. The incident was reported from Mahoba district of Uttar Pradesh (UP). It is said that as the procession passed by Bashir’s house, gulal (red powder) being used by the devotees fell on Mohammad Bhura.

25) Former Hamas chief Khaled Mashal virtually addressed an anti-Israel rally in Kerala’s Malappuram. ‘Bulldoze Hindutva, unroot Zionism’ slogans were raised at the rally.

Pakistan

Abduction, rape, forced conversion, and marriage of minor Hindu girls are common occurrences in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. At least 1,000 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) Approximately two months ago, Rajeeta Kolhi (some reports note her name as Reeta Meghwar and Reeta Kohli) fell victim to Islamist abductors. The main accused is named Ashiq Ahmadani. According to Reeta’s account, she was coerced into converting to Islam and forced into a marriage with a Muslim, with the abductors issuing grave threats against her family should she resist. She managed to escape forced conversion and marriage to an old Muslim man. However, the Court sent her to a “shelter home” despite her plea to reunite with her family.

2) A Hindu woman identified as Miran Kolhi was gang-raped by Shafaq Bhargari and his friends and was threatened by a woman police officer in Pakistan identified as Momal Laghari and was asked to give a false statement in favour of the accused.

3) “Shahid Afridi tried to convert me to Islam, but I didn’t compromise on Sanatan Dharma,” Danish Kaneria lays bare the truth of Pakistan. Former Pakistani Cricketer Danish Kaneria, who has been in the limelight for quite some time, has been revealing the deep-rooted Hindu hate within Pakistan, including what he experienced at the hands of many of his former teammates.

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) Amid attacks on minorities in the country, it came to light that beef was thrown in a Durga Puja mandap. The incident happened in a Durga Puja mandap at Keraniganj of Dhaka. The Police immediately launched an investigation and arrested four Islamic radicals. The arrested are Muhammed Sujan, Muhammed Rakib, Ibrahim Uddin, and Ripon Hossain.

2) Muslim youth entered a Durga Puja mandap to place the Quran. However, vigilant Hindu volunteers caught the Muslim youth and handed him over to the Police. The incident has been reported from Hathazari Upazila of Chattagram district. The arrested Muslim youth has been identified as Muhammed Shah Alam, a resident of the Najirhat area of Narsingdi district. 

3) The Police arrested a Muslim youth named Nayan Ali for murdering a Hindu woman in Bogura. On 26 October, the Police officials informed about the investigation and recent developments in a press conference in the Police Super’s office. The murdered woman has been identified as Asha Mohanta. She was a resident of Banail village under Shibganj Upazila of Bogura district. She worked as an ‘Ansar’ member.

World

1) Months after Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) won the 2-year-long legal battle against false accusations of caste discrimination, The New York Times (NYT) has now targeted the newly-inaugurated Akshardham Mahamandir in Robbinsville in the New Jersey State of United States. It attacked Akshardham Mahamandir over unverified accusations of ‘caste discrimination’, ignoring the fact that artisans were offered green cards to lie.

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.