Alarming Rise In Anti-Muslim Hate Speech In India: US Research Group (image: Unsplash/Levi Meir Clancy)
A 62 percent rise in anti-Muslim hate speech events targeting Muslims in the second half of 2023 is higher than the first six months of the year, India Hate Lab”s (IHL) report states. IHL, the Washington-based research group, revealed in its report released on Monday that among the 668 hate speech incidents aimed at Muslims in the previous year, 255 occurred in the first half of the year, while 413 took place in the last six months.
The report added that 75 percent of the cases or 498 of those incidents took place in the states ruled by the BJP. Most hate speech cases were reported from the three states – Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh and it collectively amounts to 43 percent of the total hate speech incidents recorded. Besides, the report stated that 239 or 36 percent of the incidents included a direct call of violence against Muslims.
Israel-Gaza war played a key factor in the rise of hate crimes against Muslims in the last three months, the research said. From October 7 to December 11, 41 incidents of hate speech against Indian Muslims were reported and it constituted about 20 percent of the hate speech.
The IHL report claims that the hate speech events increased between August and November, corresponding with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad-Bajrang Dal Shaurya Jagran rallies and state legislative elections took place in the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Chhattisgarh.
The report found BJP legislators T Raja Singh, Pravin Togadia, and Kajal Hindustani as the top three sources of hate speech.
United Nations defined hate speech as any prejudiced or discriminatory language towards an individual or group based on attributes including religion, ethnicity, nationality, race or gender. By using the definition, IHL pursued online activity of Hindu nationalist groups, verified videos of hate speech posted on social media and compiled data of isolated incidents reported by Indian media.
