Social Media and Hate Speech in India
Introduction This report analyzes the role of social media platforms in the dissemination and amplification of verified in-person hate speech events in India in 2024, covering various types of mass gatherings. These include political rallies, electoral campaign events, religious processions, protest marches, demonstrations, and cultural or nationalist gatherings. In other instances, they are organized with […]
DropSite: How a controversial law allows Modi’s Hindu nationalists to monitor private relationships
This week, the Mumbai-based Center for Study of Society and Secularism reported an 84 percent increase in communal riots across India from 2023 to 2024. Last year, Washington, DC-based think tank India Hate Lab documented 668 hate speech events across India that targeted Muslims. Two-thirds of those incidents occurred in states where the BJP is in power. As the UCC debate […]
UnHerd: Movies are Modi’s new weapon Bollywood is rife with anti-Muslim hatred
Not, of course, that this matters simply for India’s spiralling international reputation. On the contrary, Modi’s usurpation of his country’s media is having a real-world impact on the safety of Muslims. In 2023 alone, India Hate Lab, a Washington DC-based group that documents hate speech against India’s religious minorities, recorded 668 hate speech examples targeting Muslims. Even […]
Maharashtra Election Results Signal Potential Rise in Hate Speech and Targeted Attacks on Religious Minorities
On November 23, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) alliance secured a resounding victory in the Maharashtra state elections, securing 235 of the 288 assembly seats. The victory of the NDA alliance signals a significant achievement for the BJP as the party suffered substantial losses in the state during the 2024 parliamentary […]
Election Brief: Hate Speech and Polarization Overshadow Election Campaigning in Maharashtra
The Maharashtra state elections, set to take place on November 20, 2024, have been marked by rampant anti-Muslim hate speeches during the ongoing campaign. One of the most controversial elements of the rhetoric has been the popularization of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s slogan, “batoge toh katoge,” which translates to “if divided, you will […]
Election Brief: BJP Star Campaigners in Jharkhand Resort to Anti-Muslim Hate Speech to Polarize the Electorate
As Jharkhand heads to the polls between November 13-20, 2024, the election campaign in the state has been inundated with hateful rhetoric from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, particularly regarding alleged Rohingya and Bangladeshi ‘infiltration.’ This reflects a clear surge in anti-minority hate speech targeting Muslims living in the state, who are indirectly referenced through […]
Outlook Magazine: India Hate Lab’s Hate Speech Report Highlighted in Indian Parliament
The 18th Lok Sabha witnessed a change in the Indian Parliament. For the first time in a decade, there is a consolidated Opposition with a potential to hold the ruling party accountable. Member of Parliament Sagarika Ghose cited the data of India Hate Lab that states that 75% of the hate speech comes from the […]
TIME: How India’s Newly Empowered Opposition Can Stand Up for Rohingya
The Muslim Rohingya came to India fleeing genocide by the military in neighboring Myanmar, but now has to contend with death threats, police brutality, arbitrary arrest, deportation, and dehumanizing hate speech from leading figures within Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party. The hatred of the Rohingya is pervasive in India. Despite them comprising only around 0.02% of the country’s 200 million Muslims, 6% of […]
London School of Economics: Religiophobia or Islamophobia? Deciphering India’s inconsistency
The use of ‘religiophobia’ and ‘Islamophobia’ have been at odds during recent United Nations assemblies. Muhammad Ahmad Khan and Shafaq Zernab provide an analysis of India’s contribution to the debate. Instances of hate speech have been instigated over time in India. Meticulous data gathered by the India Hate Lab Report documented nearly two anti-Muslim hate speech […]
Asia Nikkei: Hindu mob lynchings stoke fear and anger among India’s Muslims
A string of lynchings in India has stoked fear and anger among minority Muslims, just weeks after an election that saw the ruling Hindu nationalist party accused of spouting hate-filled rhetoric. Longstanding religious tensions have soared as critics blame Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government for ignoring a jump in violence and hate directed at Muslims, who make […]