Weeks After Being Bailed In Hate Speech Case, Hindu Monk Speaks At Anti-Muslim Event And Says Hindus Must Take Up Weapons
Yati Narsinghanand, a Hindu supremacist leader who was in January charged for spreading hate speech, has yet again called on Hindus to take up arms against Muslims at a Hindu supremacist event held on April 3 in India’s capital, New Delhi. The hateful event, titled “Hindu Mahapanchayat,” was illegally called as the Delhi Administration had not given it permission.
“Once a Muslim becomes the prime minister, 50% of Hindus will convert, 40% will be killed and the remaining 10% will either live in refugee camps or in other countries in the next 20 years,” Narsinghanand claimed to the crowd of 700 to 800 Hindu extremists. “This will be the future of the Hindus. If you want to avoid this future, then become a man and take up arms.”
Narsinghanand was given bail last month after he was arrested for similar remarks he made at the north Indian city of Haridwar in December. In those remarks, he had promised money to Hindus who took up arms against Muslims.
Suresh Chavhanke, a Hindu supremacist journalist, also made hate speeches at the April 3 event, claiming that he was “against equal rights” for Muslims. Chavhanke is known for having openly taken an oath to turn India into a Hindu nation along with other Hindu extremists.
The mob attending the event also assaulted several journalists, two of them Muslims. Instead of filing charges against the mob for attacking the journalists, the police criminally charged the journalists.
One journalist with NewsLaundry, a news website, reported that a mob of people assaulted him and his colleague in front of police, saying, “Don’t give these two to the policemen, just kill them. These are jihadis, they are mullahs.”
While no arrests have yet been made, police reports have been filed against Narsinghanand and Chavhanke for spreading anti-minority hatred.
Hindu Extremist Bike Rally Leads To Clashes, Arson Of Muslim-Majority Neighborhood
A mob of Hindu extremists turned to violence after holding a bike rally to mark the Hindu New year, pelting stones and chanting Hindu religious slogans in front of a mosque in a Muslim-majority area in Rajasthan state. The extremists also played songs inciting violence against Muslims on speakers, with lyrics such as “Muslims will bow to Ram (Hindu deity) and say Jai Shree Ram (Hindu religious slogan).”
Clashes broke out as a result of the Hindu extremists’ provocation, leading to several Muslim-owned shops and vehicles being set ablaze. As many as 46 people have been arrested for taking part in the violence, which left two dozen people injured.
The rally was supported on Twitter by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kapil Mishra and Neha Joshi, Vice President of the BJP’s youth wing, posting messages sympathetic to the extremists who instigated the violence. Others slammed the hateful nature of the bike rally, including Asaduddin Owaisi, politician and President of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM).
“It seems that the government of [Chief Minister] Ashok Gehlot has given free rein to the rioters and extremists. In Karauli, if the procession was being taken out for religious reasons, then what was the need for such songs? It is clear that the radical organizations had the backing of the administration,” said Owaisi.
Gehlot called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to condemn the violence “irrespective of who’s responsible for it,” saying, “Be it Hindu or Muslim, anyone who is anti-social should be punished.”
Hindu Extremists Call For Ban On Mosque Loudspeakers, Muslims Attacked After Extremists Play Anti-Muslim Music Outside Mosque
As Karnataka state racks up an increasing number of hateful anti-Muslim policies, from the hijab ban to the attempted halal meat ban, Hindu extremists have now begun calling for a ban on loudspeakers in mosques, which are used to broadcast the adhan, or the Muslim call to prayer. Siddalinga Swamiji, president of the Hindu supremacist group Sri Rama Sene, called for the government to put an end to the “noise pollution” created by the adhan.
“During the time of Ramadan, the use of sirens by mosques also annoys people. The state should step in and take action,” he said.
Meanwhile, Muslims in a Karnataka village were attacked after Hindu extremists celebrating a festival played disruptive anti-Muslim music outside of a mosque, leading to conflict. In the resulting stone pelting, two Muslims were injured. However, no Hindu extremists were arrested for instigating tension and conflict.
