Muslim man assaulted, left for dead by Hindu extremist cow vigilantes in Gujarat
In Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Gujarat’s Bharuch, violent Hindu extremist cow vigilantes brutally assaulted a Muslim man, Aslam, over allegations of “transporting cattle.” Aslam’s unconscious body was thrown into a forest, and he is currently in critical condition in the hospital. Local activists state that the police have refused to register a complaint regarding the incident.
Police open fire at “cattle smugglers” in Uttar Pradesh, two injured
In separate incidents in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur and Rampur, police opened fire at alleged “cattle smugglers,” who sustained bullet injuries in their legs.
The incident is the latest in an ongoing trend of violent attacks against predominantly Muslim cattle traders by both Hindu extremist groups and law enforcement. Last month, a man in Ghazipur sustained a bullet injury over the same allegation. Earlier, a 23-year-old Muslim man, Sajid Qureshi, was killed by police in Rampur, who claimed that Qureshi was planning to slaughter a cow.
Police arrest Christians after far-right groups accuse them of forced conversion
In separate incidents in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh, Hindu extremists stopped Christian prayer meetings over baseless allegations of Christians forcibly converting Hindus. Police arrested several Christians in Khargone and one Christian in Alirajpur. Recently, four Christians were arrested in Betul over similar allegations.
Anti-Christian hate and harassment remain on the rise throughout India. D.C.-based human rights group International Christian Concern named India among the top 10 countries persecuting Christians in its 2023 Persecutors of the Year Report.