Muslim men assaulted, harassed over suspicion of smuggling cows

In Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Uttar Pradesh’s Mathura, cow vigilantes harassed two Muslim men over suspicions of them allegedly carrying beef. 

Hindu militant mobs have increasingly been targeting Muslims over baseless accusations of committing crimes. These mobs, also known as cow vigilantes, attack and often lynch Muslims accused of transporting cattle or consuming beef.

Kerala minister refers to Muslim-majority region as a hub for “anti-national activities”

Protests have erupted after Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan made an explicitly anti-Muslim comment, in which he called the state’s only Muslim-majority district a center for “anti-national activities.”

Protesters say that the statement is part of a wider Hindu supremacist campaign to paint the district as being a terrorism hub, a narrative they believe is being propagated by the Hindu paramilitary group Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). 

BJP leaders call for “kicking out” Muslims, advocate violence 

In Jharkhand’s Dhanbad, BJP leader Rajnath Singh threatened to “kick [Bangladeshis] out one by one.” In Haryana’s Panchkula, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma made a similar speech calling for the ethnic cleansing of Muslims, saying, “We have to throw all these Babars (Muslims) out, otherwise India will never be safe.”

Muslim man acquitted in 2006 reports harassment from officials after recent raid

Abdul Wahid Sheikh, a Muslim man who was acquitted of charges related to bomb blasts that took place in Mumbai in 2006, has reported ongoing harassment from the police, despite being cleared of all accusations. 

After a recent search operation at his residence by a federal probe agency, Sheikh expressed his frustration over repeated visits from the police, stating that their actions have caused significant distress to him and his family.

Shaikh, a school teacher, had been jailed for nine years until a court acquitted him in 2015, pronouncing him innocent.