- India saw a concerning rise in anti-Muslim hate speech incidents, averaging over one per day in the first half of 2023, per Hindutva Watch.
- Around 70% of these incidents were concentrated in states with upcoming elections, primarily led by the BJP, with concerns raised by rights groups about minority mistreatment under Modi’s leadership.
In the first half of 2023, India experienced an alarming increase in anti-Muslim hate speech incidents, with more than one occurring daily, as revealed in a report by Hindutva Watch, a Washington-based organization that monitors attacks on minorities. Key findings from the report include:
The report documented 255 hate speech gatherings targeting Muslims during this period, with no comparative data available for previous years. These incidents align with the United Nations’ definition of hate speech, involving prejudiced or discriminatory language based on attributes such as religion, ethnicity, nationality, race, colour, descent, gender, or other identity factors.
Approximately 70% of these hate speech incidents were concentrated in states scheduled to hold elections in 2023 and 2024.
The states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Gujarat witnessed the highest number of hate speech gatherings, with Maharashtra alone accounting for 29% of such incidents. These gatherings often featured conspiracy theories, calls for violence, and socio-economic boycotts against Muslims.
Notably, around 80% of these events occurred in areas governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is widely expected to win the 2024 general elections.
Hindutva Watch compiled this data by monitoring online activity of Hindu nationalist groups, verifying hate speech videos on social media, and aggregating incidents reported by the media. Despite these findings, the Indian government, under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership since 2014, denies allegations of minority abuse, and the Indian embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment.
Human Rights groups have consistently raised concerns about mistreatment of Muslims under Modi’s administration, citing measures such as the 2019 citizenship law, anti-conversion legislation, the revocation of Kashmir’s special status, demolitions of Muslim properties, and bans on wearing the hijab in classrooms during BJP rule in Karnataka.
