IAMC Weekly News Digest, 5th November 2021
Facebook Let an Islamophobic Conspiracy Theory Flourish in India Despite Employees’ Warnings – By Billy Perrogo
Photo: Time.com
In a video posted to Facebook in November 2020, an extremist priest called for Hindus to rise up and begin killing Muslims in India. “People need to learn that this is not the time to protest, but the time to go to war,” said Narsinghanand Saraswati, who has been named by at least one international watchdog as an extremist hate preacher. “This is a global war where Islam’s jihadis are fully prepared. It’s our choice if Hindus should fight or not. But Muslims will not spare Hindus.”… With 1.4 million views as of late October this year, the video was one of the top posts on Facebook about “Love Jihad,” a popular Islamophobic conspiracy theory that suggests Muslim men are attempting to wage a holy war against Hinduism by marrying and converting Hindu women to Islam. Facebook banned the QAnon conspiracy theory in October 2020, designating it a “militarized social movement.” But the company has not applied the same definition to Love Jihad, which began as a fringe conspiracy theory but began to enter the Indian political mainstream around 2016 after being taken up as a narrative by Hindu nationalist groups….
Extrajudicial Killings in UP Being Covered Up, Even NHRC Flouting Norms: Report
Photo: PTI
A new report by civil society organisations has highlighted how a culture of impunity is allegedly being pushed at all levels after ‘extrajudicial killings’ in Uttar Pradesh, with the police regularly being let off the hook for their ‘illegal’ actions without proper investigation. While extrajudicial killings are not a new phenomenon in India, and have been witnessed across the country and over decades, the current Yogi Adityanath-led government in Uttar Pradesh has been blatant in its support for the police violence against those seen to be breaking the law. In fact, the chief minister himself has touted this as a win for the state government, showing how it is tough on law and order. In this situation, it is perhaps unsurprising that the police officers responsible for alleged extrajudicial killings are not held to account. Since March 2017, news reports suggest 8,472 instances of police firings have taken place, leading to the deaths of 146 men and bullet injuries to 3,302 more….
Jammu and Kashmir BJP leader booked for asking his supporters to ‘skin’ Muslims alive
Vikram Randhawa with PM Narendra Modi in an earlier photo. Photo: Twitter
The Jammu and Kashmir Police have booked Bharatiya Janata Party leader Vikram Randhawa for hate speech after he asked his supporters to beat up Kashmiri Muslims and “skin them alive” for celebrating the Pakistan cricket team’s victory against India in the T20 World Cup match on October 24, The Wire reported on Tuesday. The police booked Randhawa under Indian Penal Code Section 295-A for hurting religious sentiments and under Section 505(2) for promoting enmity between religious groups. However, he is yet to be arrested. In a video posted on Twitter by Peoples Democratic Party leader Naeem Akhtar, Randhawa also demanded that the Indian citizenship of those who had cheered for Pakistan should be revoked….
Announcement
Facebook must stop facilitating India’s genocidal rhetoric against minorities, say Indian Americans
Communal Harmony
Muslims fund Hindu co-villager’s final farewell
News
Tripura: USCIRF chief expresses concern over attacks on Muslims
Extrajudicial Killings in UP Being Covered Up, Even NHRC Flouting Norms: Report
Jammu and Kashmir BJP leader booked for asking his supporters to ‘skin’ Muslims alive
Twitter user giving rape threat to Virat Kohli’s daughter is Indian, not Pakistani
Gurgaon Administration Withdraws Permission for Namaz at Eight Spots
What makes PM Modi unceasingly target human rights activists?
‘I Was Told to Stop Financing Farmers’ Langar’, Says Prominent PIO Deported from Delhi Airport
Ex-Bajrang Dal volunteers call for ‘bandhutva, not Hindutva’
Madhya Pradesh woman forced to undergo ‘purification’ for marrying Dalit man
Opinion
Why Tripura, Why Now? Recent Anti-Muslim Violence Has a Political Context – By Rahul Mukherji
Deflating the bogey of a rapidly growing Muslim population – By Rahul Singh
Do Yogi’s Brazen Attacks on Muslims Point To Insecurity Ahead of UP Polls? – By Sudheendra Kulkarni
The Tragedy and Tenacity of the Farmers at Tikri Border – By Rohit Kumar
