Mob Attacks, Hate Speech, and Cross-Border Misinformation Target Muslims
A surge in mob attacks, hate speech, and “fabricated” cross-border narratives in June 2025 reveals how religion and misinformation are increasingly weaponized in India and Bangladesh for political end
২০২৫ সালের জুন মাসে ভারত ও বাংলাদেশে সংখ্যালঘু মুসলিমদের বিরুদ্ধে সহিংসতা, বিদ্বেষমূলক বক্তব্য এবং মিথ্যা প্রচার প্রকট আকার ধারণ করেছে। ধর্ম ও গণমাধ্যম কীভাবে রাজনৈতিক অস্ত্র হয়ে উঠছে, এই প্রতিবেদন তুলে ধরা হয়েছে সেই বাস্তবতা।
In June 2025, South Asia witnessed a continuation of religious violence, fake news, and political messaging that mainly targeted Muslim minorities. In India, there were mob attacks, hate speeches by religious leaders, and forced deportations of Muslims to Bangladesh.
At the same time, some Indian media were alleged to spread false stories about events in Bangladesh, claiming attacks on Hindus. These included reports about Tagore’s ancestral home and poet Atul Prasad Sen’s property.
This month’s Insighta report brings together these key events to show what really happened and how religion and media are being used to spread fear, hatred, and political agendas.
Muslim man beaten by cow vigilantes dies in India’s Madhya Pradesh
June 5: Two Muslim men were brutally assaulted by a group of cow vigilantes in Madhya Pradesh's Raisen district while allegedly transporting cows, reports media.
The mob filmed the attack and shared it on social media. Both victims were hospitalized in critical condition. Junaid, one of the victims, died on June 17 after nearly two weeks on life support while Arman remains critical. However, the victim’s family claimed that he was transporting the cows for dairy, not for slaughtering.
Hindutva mob assaults Muslim labourers in India’s Jharkhand
June 6: Three Muslim labourers were brutally attacked by a mob of over 30 people, allegedly affiliated with Hindutva groups in Ranchi, Jharkhand, reports media.
The assault reportedly occurred after the men returned from prayer and were taking a lunch break. According to the victims’ account, the mob questioned their identity, and upon learning they were Muslims, ordered them to leave. When they refused to chant “Jai Shri Ram,” the mob became violent.
More than black and white—A Hindu's story from Bangladesh
June 11: Indian media outlet The Wire published a short documentary titled “Being Hindu in Bangladesh is Not a Black and White Story” which tells the personal story of Deepak Kumar Goswami, a well-known actor from Bangladesh who is Hindu. He talks about what it’s really like to live as a Hindu in Bangladesh, a Muslim majority country.
Deepak shows that life in Bangladesh for Hindus isn’t just good or bad—it’s more complex than what some Indian media shows. In the documentary, Deepak criticizes the Indian media for spreading propaganda after Hasina fled to India, questioning whether it truly supports Hindus or serves Hasina’s interests.
He rejects the portrayal of the July 2024 uprising as an Islamist movement, pointing out that Hindus, including himself, also opposed Hasina—a fact ignored by the Indian media.
Hindutva leader openly calls for violence against Muslims during Eid in India
During Eid-ul-Azha celebrations in Mathura’s Barsana area, tensions flared after alleged cow remains were found near an Idgah. Hindu groups, claiming illegal cow slaughter, stormed the area, leading police to register a case against over 70 individuals.
Tensions escalated following a speech by Hindutva leader Indresh Kaushik, in which he made inflammatory remarks toward Muslims. He said if Muslims don’t stop, they will tear off their caps and beards, and that they are ready for war. The remarks sparked concern within the local Muslim community.
A petty incident at Tagore’s ancestral home in Bangladesh framed as communal attack
June 8: A misunderstanding over a parking ticket led to an altercation between an on-duty employee and a visitor at Rabindra Kachari Bari, a popular tourist destination and also the ancestral home of Nobel laureate poet Rabindranath Tagore in Shahjadpur of Sirajganj in Bangladesh. Custodian of the archaeology department Habibur Rahman was accused of assaulting and detaining a visitor named Shahnewaz.
June 10: Agitated locals vandalized the custodian’s office and auditorium and assaulted several staff members after forming a human chain against the assault on the visitor, reports local media. While the incident stemmed from a personal dispute, the Indian government, political leaders, and Hindutva-aligned social media accounts framed it as a communal attack.
June 12: India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal strongly condemned the incident and said, “The attack falls in the broad pattern of systematic attempts by extremists to erase the symbols of tolerance and eviscerate the syncretic culture and the cultural legacy of Bangladesh.”
June 12: Speaking at a press conference, BJP MP and national spokesperson Sambit Patra strongly condemned the incident and said, “The attack …..was a pre-planned attack by Jamaat-e-Islami and Hefazat-e-Islam.”
However, these narratives are inaccurate and misleading. Investigations and verified reports have established that the incident had no communal or political links. It was not orchestrated by any radical groups.
June 13: Bangladesh’s Ministry of Cultural Affairs also clarified the incident, saying that there was “no communal or political motive behind the attack” and that the incident stemmed from a personal conflict.
Hindu religious leader calls for killing of Muslims, Christians in India
June 15: In a viral video surfaced on social media, Atmananda Saraswati Swamiji, an Indian Hindu religious leader, was seen delivering a hate speech calling for violence against Muslims and Christians.
In the video, Swamiji claims Sanatana Dharma is the only true religion in the country and calls for the elimination of Muslims and Christians using modern weapons. He also justifies killing thousands who oppose Sanatana Dharma, criticizing past leaders for showing them mercy.
Mass Demolition in Assam Displaces Hundreds of Muslims
June 16-18: In a controversial eviction drive in Hasila Bill, Goalpara district of Assam, over 700 homes, mainly of Bengali-speaking Muslims, were demolished by government bulldozers during peak monsoon and extreme heat conditions. While officials called it an action against illegal settlements, many displaced residents are documented Indian citizens. This incident caused human suffering, including the tragic death of a 60-year-old woman from heatstroke.
Misleading claims by Indian media about poet Atul Prasad Sen’s ancestral home in Bangladesh
June 17: Bangladeshi newspaper Kaler Kantho published a news article claiming the ancestral home of renowned Bengali poet Atul Prasad Sen in Shariatpur’s Naria upazila had been unlawfully occupied by an influential local figure.
Following this, several Indian media outlets including OpIndia picked up the report and amplified the claims, alleging that “extremists” had taken over the property. The misinformation was further spread through various social media platforms, including Voice of Bangladeshi Hindus saying: “Renowned Bengali poet Atul Prasad Sen’s ancestral home in Bangladesh has reportedly been seized and converted into an Islamic site.”
June 17: Bangladesh Chief Adviser’s Press Wing debunked the media reports terming them as false through a statement. The statement said the poet never lived at the Shariatpur property. After Partition, his brother Basanta Kumar Sen sold all the family property before leaving. Since the 1960s, the property has changed hands legally and is now owned by the family of the late Ali Azam Munshi, based on documented sales, not illegal occupation.
India illegally deporting Muslim citizens at gunpoint to Bangladesh: The Guardian
June 19: The Guardian published an article on the ongoing deportations of Muslim minorities from India to neighbouring Bangladesh. According to the article, India has intensified deportations of its Muslim minorities under a new policy, with hundreds expelled from Assam, Delhi, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra. In Gujarat alone, over 6,500 were detained—only 450 were later confirmed as undocumented.
Hazera Khatun, a 62-year-old disabled Indian woman, was detained by police on May 25 and forced across the Bangladesh border with 14 other Muslims. She told The Guardian they were treated like animals and threatened at gunpoint. Hearing gunshots from the Indian side, they crossed the border in fear, despite insisting they were Indian citizens.
False claim frames personal dispute as Islamist ‘Jizya Tax’ killing
In June 2023, a Hindu businessman named Bikash Chandra Das was killed in Chandina, Cumilla, Bangladesh. Recently, a false narrative has gone viral on social media, claiming he was murdered by Islamic extremists for refusing to pay a “Jizya tax.”
However, verified reports from local newspapers and police investigations confirm the murder was the result of a personal dispute over a pickup truck rental. The actual accused, Azizul Islam Aju, was arrested on June 28, 2023. Authorities confirmed no religious or extremist motives.
Blasphemy allegation against Hindu barber sparks tension in Bangladesh's Lalmonirhat
June 22: A Hindu barber and his son were detained by police after some locals accused them of hurting religious sentiments in Lalmonirhat district, Bangladesh, on June 22, reports local media.
Nazmul Islam, who is from the same locality, alleged that barber Paresh and his son Bishnu made remarks that hurt his religious sentiments when he went to their shop for a haircut on June 20. Meanwhile, several media outlets and social media users from India are portraying the incident as an “Islamist attack” on the Hindu minority.
However, the victims’ family told the media that it was not a religious matter. They claimed the false accusation was made against the father and son to provoke locals after they protested against underpayment for a haircut.
Dipti Rani Shil, wife of Bishnu, told the media, "I asked my father-in-law about the incident. He clearly said nothing of that sort (blasphemy) happened. A boy was leaving after getting a haircut and paying less. When there was an argument over this, the boy left, threatening to ‘show them later’.”
Land dispute misrepresented as religious attack in Bangladesh
On April 23, Bangladeshi newspaper Bangla Tribune published a misleading report titled “Ultimatum from worshippers to remove temple in Khilkhet, police trying to mediate”.
Based on the report, several Indian media outlets and pro-Hindutva social media pages portrayed it as an ‘Islamist attack’ and framed it as part of a broader campaign of religious persecution in Bangladesh.
The news report, according to fact-checkers, relied solely on a Facebook post by Suman Sudha and lacked eyewitness accounts and omitted the fact that the dispute centered on construction on government land.
In this regard, BanglaFact, a fact-checking platform, said, “The widely circulated claim about an attack by local Muslims on a Hindu temple in Dhaka’s Khilkhet area is misleading.The dispute began when a group of Hindus attempted to construct a temple on railway-owned (government) land, which led to objections from local residents. This resulted in an exchange of words between the two sides. However, the incident was later misrepresented as an attempt to remove idols and an attack on the temple.”
Qadaruddin Shishir, an independent fact-checker, wrote in his Facebook account, “If you’re a sensible person, this headline should make you angry—Muslims giving an ultimatum to remove a temple? I was outraged too. But the truth is, there’s no temple there at all. It’s just a signboard claiming a temple will be built, placed on government-owned railway land.”
“The incident has been turned into propaganda by some pages supporting the Awami League and BJP, falsely claiming ‘a temple was threatened’ or even ‘a temple was demolished’ in Bangladesh. And unfortunately, Bangla Tribune helped amplify that propaganda,” he added.
June 24: Finally, Bangla Tribune removed the published news and issued an apology, stating, “Some factual inaccuracies were identified in the report, and those have been corrected. We sincerely apologize for any unintended confusion caused.”
About the Author:
Mohammed Raihan is a staff contributor to the Insighta. He writes on history, culture, language, economy and geopolitics, uncovering untold narratives that connect the past and present. He can be reached at mohammed_raihan@theinsighta.com
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