India Hate Lab, a research group in the US, documented 668 incidents of hate speech against Muslims in 2023, of which 413 took place in the last six months of the year, coinciding with key state elections.
In the decade since Modi took power, “what has exponentially increased is runaway hate speech spouting venom against Muslims”, including calls for genocide by politicians and Hindu religious leaders, says social activist Harsh Mander.
“India is witnessing an alarming rise in hate speech and targeted violence against individuals, which we call mob lynching – a word that was not even used earlier because it wasn’t a common grind.