Modi's 3rd term sees alarming rise in crimes against minorities: Report

A fresh report by the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) has documented an alarming surge in hate crimes and inflammatory rhetoric against religious minorities in India during the first year of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s third term in office.

Titled ‘Hate Crime Report: Mapping First Year of Modi’s Third Government’, the study provides a chilling account of targeted violence and hate speech, indicating a deepening crisis for minorities in the country.

Systematic and intensifying hate crimes

The report, republished in the the Wire, is the result of a year-long investigation from 7 June 2024 to 7 June 2025 — and paints a stark picture: hate crimes are no longer isolated acts of violence but are becoming disturbingly normalised and politically aligned.

A total of 947 incidents were recorded, comprising 602 hate crimes and 345 cases of hate speech. Among the hate crimes, 173 incidents involved physical violence and, in 25 of these, the victims — exclusively Muslim — were killed.

The APCR defines hate crimes using the United Nations’ Rabat Plan of Action, stating that these actions motivated by prejudice against a victim’s social identity and often involve physical harm, threats or destruction of property. The report also categorises as hate speech any offensive discourse aimed at individuals on the basis of their identity.

Communities in the crosshairs

While Muslims were the primary targets of hate crimes, the report also documents violence against Dalits, Adivasis and Christians. Notably, 25 Hindus were affected as collateral victims, often harmed while present at communal flashpoints. Among them, Hindu women experienced greater vulnerability.

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Political links and state complicity

Of the 345 hate speech incidents analysed, 178 were traced to individuals affiliated with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The report further claims that BJP-ruled states exhibited a higher frequency of hate crime incidents, with Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra consistently featuring as the most affected.

In several of these states, minorities were targeted during religious festivals or in the aftermath of national incidents. For example, April 2025 saw a spike in hate crimes following the Pahalgam terror attack, with Uttar Pradesh again recording the highest number.

Religious festivals as flashpoints

The report makes a significant observation that Hindu festivals such as Ram Navami, Holi, Navratri and Ganesh Chaturthi have increasingly become occasions for targeted communal violence. According to APCR, these events are exploited by right-wing groups — often with political and media backing — to mobilise against minorities.

In Jodhpur, during Ram Navami, a procession featured a tableau depicting a chained Muslim man.

In Barmer and Telangana, places of worship were vandalised.

In Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, incidents of cow vigilantism, social boycott and physical assault were reported.

Electoral strategy behind hate?

The timing of many of these incidents is no coincidence, the report argues. Hate crimes and hate speeches reportedly escalated around elections — not only at the national and state level but also during local polls. In states like Delhi, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand, data pointed to coordinated campaigns designed to foster polarisation and consolidate Hindu nationalist support.

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Police and media: passive or partisan

The APCR study criticises law enforcement for what it describes as passive and sometimes complicit behaviour. Merely 13 per cent of documented hate crimes led to the registration of First Information Reports (FIRs). In one shocking incident, a Christian priest seeking police assistance in Jabalpur was assaulted by right-wing activists inside the police station itself.

Meanwhile, the media has also come under scrutiny for promoting inflammatory narratives. Channels like Sudarshan TV are accused of amplifying baseless claims — such as linking Garba events to ‘love jihad’ conspiracies — thus fuelling an ecosystem of hate.

Leadership and the normalisation of hate

Perhaps most disturbing is the report’s assertion that hate speech is no longer limited to fringe actors. It implicates senior leaders of the BJP, including Prime Minister Modi, as active participants in spreading divisive rhetoric. Of the 345 recorded hate speech instances, 139 were made by elected representatives, including five by Modi himself, 63 by BJP chief ministers, and 71 by other public officials.

The report further notes that even members of the judiciary and governors were not immune, with two judges and one governor recorded delivering hate speech. These developments, the APCR warns, are indicative of a broader transformation — where hate is not just tolerated but institutionalised.

A governance model built on hostility?

According to the APCR, Hindutva ideology has moved from the margins to the mainstream, now serving as a governance model. The report echoes earlier warnings from human rights watchdogs such as Human Rights Watch, which in 2024 accused Modi and the BJP of running an election campaign fuelled by Islamophobic speech.

The APCR concludes that the leadership’s rhetoric emboldens right-wing groups and contributes to a hostile environment where minorities are increasingly marginalised, criminalised and dehumanised.