Anti-Hindu speech: Islamic terror group raises call for Jihad against Hindus, incites Muslims to cleanse Kashmir of Hindu presence
Afghanistan 
19 September, 2024
Case Summary
The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir held its first assembly election in September 2024 following the abrogation of Article 370 on 5 August 2019. During this period, the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), a regional branch of ISIS, an Islamic terrorist organisation, sought to incite violence. In its propaganda magazine, "Voice of Khurasan", it referred to Kashmir as "The Paradise Under the Control of Infidels". The magazine urged Kashmiri Muslims to wage jihad, holy war against non-Muslims by Muslims, against India and Hindus, while spreading false claims of atrocities committed by security forces. The article used inflammatory rhetoric, accusing India, particularly Hindus, of oppressing Muslims in Kashmir, and drew comparisons to the situation faced by Uyghur Muslims in China. The piece also criticised Pakistani terrorist groups such as Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba, alleging they were involved in nationalist agendas rather than true jihad. ISKP called for a "genuine jihad" against both India and Pakistan. Despite these efforts to destabilise the region, the elections continued with significant voter participation, marking progress in integrating Jammu and Kashmir into the Indian democratic process. The article titled "Kashmir: The Paradise under the Control of Infidels", the first article in the magazine, began by lamenting how Muslims abandoned jihad and replaced the Quran with Western laws, which caused a steady decline of the Ummah (Muslim community) at the hands of non-Muslims. It stated, “After the division of the Islamic Ummah, every part of its existence is filled with pain, and one part of it cannot heal the pain of any other part. Now, the infidels are standing in one rank to attack the existence of the Islamic Ummah, and all of them are shooting arrows at it from the same bow.......You see that the Jews, Crusaders, atheists, communists, Hindus, Magians, and other pagan nations in the world each have their separate states they defend with their persons and wealth. The United Nations, the Security Council, the international community, and other oppressive groups have also allowed this, calling it the economic right of these infidels. On the other hand, Muslims do not have the right to have an independent Islamic state under which they can gather beneath the shade of one flag and obey one Imam.” It further stated, “Kashmir, which was once synonymous with beauty and vibrant colours, has now become the symbol of oppression and desolation. This land has become a prison for a people from the Islamic Ummah, like East Turkestan, where the identity, culture, belief, civilisation, and culture are in danger. Yes, the same land that was once called “Jannat” on earth is now ruled by Hindu polytheists. The same Kashmir that was once the fortress of Islam on the Indian subcontinent for Muslims is today the home in which Muslims spend the bitterest of nights.” “Once upon a time, Muslim horses used to pass through the land of Kashmir to bring the vast land of India under the rule of Sharia, but today, the armies of Indian polytheists from India are trampling Islam and its rituals and sanctities. Today, every city and village of Kashmir is crying out of subjugation and oppression, the wails of Muslims are coming from every house, and the blood of Muslims is being shed daily by the hands of Hindu polytheists and especially the Bharatiya Janata Party. They are taken to jails, abducted, and tortured under one pretext or another, and the dignity of Muslim sisters is besmirched. After the Uyghurs, the Kashmiri Muslims are the segment of the Islamic Ummah that is facing the worst massacres. Their religion, honour, and sanctity are under constant threat. Truly, the wish of the Hindu polytheists is that the Kashmiri Muslims should worship Allah as they do, chanting “Ram Ram and Bhagwan Bhagwan” instead (Nawjubillah),” the article levelled those allegations without citing any concrete incidences of oppression by the ‘notorious polytheists alias Hindus’ in Kashmir. “At one time, Hindu and Sikh polytheists did not dare to set foot on this land. There was a time when polytheists had to get permission to enter the area. But now, this area is a haven for Hindu and Sikh polytheists, and the Muslims living there are now forced to seek permission to stay in their lands and spend the worst nights of life with the permission of the polytheists,” the article contained yet another baseless assertion that demonstrated its nefarious objective. Notably, the land of Kashmir has historically belonged to Hindus and other Dharmic faiths until Islamic invaders devastated the region for conversion, rape, loot, and oppression. The article then turned its attention to the “zealous and brave youth of Kashmir” and employed emotional manipulation combined with religious fervour. “How long will you live this bitter life of humiliation and disgrace under the oppression of tawaghit? How long will you continue to endure the atrocities of the tawaghit? How long will you shed tears of helplessness like women under the rule of the tawaghit? How long will you continue to watch the scenes of your sisters being humiliated and brothers being killed and imprisoned? How long will you wait for some divine calamity to descend upon the oppressors so that you can be saved from their atrocities? Arise and defend your faith, honour and religious sanctity, and sacrifice your person and wealth on this holy path,” it provoked. The article incited young Kashmiri Muslims to take up arms and engage in bloodshed. It urged, “Stain the streets of Muzaffarnagar, Srinagar, Ladakh, and every city in Kashmir with the blood of idolaters and traitors! Punish them in such a way that future generations will remember them! O youth! Protect yourself from nationalist organisations and intelligence-backed militias because they trade in your blood and sacrifices, giving all the benefits of your jihad and fighting to the lords of tyranny and disbelief instead of the enforcement of Sharia. O youth! The mountains and valleys of Kashmir are waiting for your feet to touch them. Turn the high mountains of Kashmir and the dense forests of the Himalayas into the graveyard of Pakistani and Indian soldiers and strike such a blow that the jungle animals are too full to finish eating their corpses.” It invoked the name of Shaykh Abu Hafs al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, the fifth and current caliph of the Islamic State, to encourage Kashmiris to adhere to the same path. “O proud youth! Raise the flag of tawhid (monotheism/belief in Allah), provide as many means and tools as possible for war, and open the front of jihad and fighting against the infidels. No one should bargain over your efforts, sacrifices, blood, and jihad. Choose the holy ranks of Dawlatul Islamiya and the shade of the black flag of tawhid under the leadership of Shaykh Abu Hafs al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, start jihad and fight accordingly.” The article asked Kashmiri Muslims to transform the region into Jannat (heaven) where non-believers are forbidden entry, referring to the Islamic doctrine that Muslims alone are entitled to paradise and non-Muslims will spend eternity in hell. It implored, “O zealous believers living in Kashmir! The ongoing humiliation, crisis, and lack of security in this subjugated and oppressed land can end only when you start an armed jihad against all the tawaghit. Arise and try once again to bring the rule of Islam to this land of Muslims and enforce the Sharia that was revealed to the Prophet. Just as this land is called the Jannat on earth, turn it into the Jannat in which the polytheists do not have a place to step, and the believers live in peace, honour, and dignity.” It then cited religious quotes to assert its point, stressing, “Abu Hurairah (one of the companions of the Prophet Muhammad) reported that the Messenger of Allah said, ‘Some people of my Ummah will invade India and Allah will enable them to conquer it, until they bring the kings of India in chains, and Allah will forgive them their sins. Then they will return to ash-Sham, and there they will find Issa ibn Maryam.’ On the authority of Thawban (one of the companions of the Prophet Muhammad), the Messenger of Allah said, ‘There will be two groups in my Ummah whom Allah has protected from the fire. One group will invade India and the other group will follow Issa Ibn Maryam.’” The article further added, “And Abu Huraira reported, ‘The Messenger of Allah promised us the invasion of India. If I get the opportunity to participate in it, I will spend my life and wealth in it; if I am killed, I will be counted among the best martyrs; and if I return, I will be free (from the Hellfire),” to justify why Kashmiri Muslims must take up arms and assist in the invasion of India. “So, O oppressed Muslims living in Kashmir! Arise for the best battle, the best martyrdom, and the best victory. Get up! Save yourselves from the burning fire of Hell. Advance one another in attaining the greatest happiness of the best ghazis and the best martyrs. Do not waste this opportunity. Wage jihad against the polytheists and idolaters to make the kalimah of tawhid reign supreme. Do the greatest jihad! Soon, victory will kiss your feet, and you will have a free and independent land steeped in tawhid, jihad, and Sharia. Allah is mightier than all, but most of the people do not know,” the article concluded with yet another sincere appeal to butcher non-Muslims, particularly Hindus, for the sake of Islam.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case is being added to the tracker under the primary category- Hate Speech against Hindus. Within this, the subcategory selected is- Violent Threats. Violent threats, explicit, implicit or implied, is the most dangerous form of hate speech since it goes beyond discriminatory and prejudicial language to express the intent of causing harm to an individual or a group of people based on their religious identity and faith. There could be several different kinds of threats that are issued to Hindus based on religious animosity. An explicit threat would mean the direct threat of violence towards an individual Hindu, a group of Hindus or Hindus at large. Physical violence, death threats, threats of destruction of property belonging to Hindus and threats of genocide would mean explicit threats against Hindus for their religious identity. Implicit threats may not be a direct threat but implied through the use of symbols of actions – for example – in the Nupur Sharma case, other than explicit threats, there were also implicit threats when Islamists took to the streets to burn and beat her effigies. It implies that they want to do the same to Nupur Sharma – thereby is considered an implicit threat. Violent threats can be delivered in person, through letters, phone calls, graffiti, or increasingly through social media and other online platforms. It would be important to understand that a threat – explicit or implicit, online or offline – to an individual who happens to be a Hindu does not qualify as a religiously motivated threat. Such a threat, while vile and dangerous, could be owing to non-religious reasons and/or personal animosity. To qualify as a religiously motivated threat, it would need to exhibit an indication that the individual is being targeted for religious reasons and/or owing to his/her religious identity as a Hindu. The other subcategory selected is- Call for genocide/violence against Hindus/specific sects of Hindus. Hate speech is defined as any speech, gesture, conduct, writing, or display that is prejudicial against a specific individual and/or group of people, which is leading to or may lead to violence, prejudicial action or hate against that individual and/or group. Often, animosity against Hindus or a specific panth/sampradaya/group of Hindus or a specific ideology they hold manifests itself into hate speech and calls for genocide/violence against that specific section of Hindus. For example, it has often been seen that those who hold animosity against the Hindu faith use specific sects/sampradaya/pant of Hindus as a proxy to express hate against Hindus as a whole. It has been seen that the word ‘Hindutva’ has been used to call for violence against those who say they believe in ‘Hindutva’. It is observed that ‘Hindutva’ is only used as a proxy to call for violence against Hindus as a whole, as seen in the Dismantling Global Hindutva conference where speakers admitted that ‘Hindutva’ cannot be eradicated till ‘Hinduism’ is eradicated. The eradication of an entire faith, in turn, is a genocidal call against the entire community that practices that faith. Further, it is also observed that violence against a specific section of Hindus is made, justifying these calls by weaving exaggerated tales of historical injustices. Often, those who hold animosity towards Hindus and their faith attempt to make their animosity more palatable by justifying their hate for a specific section, claiming that they are against that particular section because of their faith in the broader community and the religion they process. Such calls for violence against specific sections of Hindus, as mentioned, is a proxy for their animosity against the entire community and the faith they profess, and therefore, would be considered hate speech under this category. In this incident, the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) clearly engages in anti-Hindu hate speech through its propaganda and calls to action, reflecting deep-rooted religious animosity. Firstly, by designating Kashmir as "The Paradise Under the Control of Infidels" and urging Kashmiri Muslims to wage jihad, holy war against non-Muslims by Muslims, ISKP specifically targets Hindus as the enemies to be expelled and killed. This characterisation criminalises Hindus as oppressors who must be violently resisted, anchoring the conflict deeply in religion rather than any political or social dispute. The open call to violent jihad against Hindus explicitly incites communal hatred and legitimises murder under the guise of religious duty, which quintessentially defines religiously motivated hate speech. Secondly, ISKP demonises Hindus by painting them as "polytheists" who oppress, torture, and murder Muslims daily, including the bloodshed orchestrated by the Bharatiya Janata Party. This rhetoric serves to dehumanise the entire Hindu community, making them objects of hatred and targets for violence. Such sweeping accusations foster an environment ripe for sectarian strife, encouraging extremist elements to view Hindus not as fellow citizens but as enemies of the faith. It perpetuates an “us versus them” narrative that fuels division and communal distrust, deeply entrenched in religious animosity towards the Hindu community. Thirdly, by invoking the historical imagery of Muslim rule spreading Sharia across India and lamenting its present "occupation" by Hindus, the propaganda attempts to rekindle a religious and territorial grievance. It falsely frames Hindus as invaders desecrating the sanctity of a once-pure Islamic land, thereby inciting a collective religious indignation meant to justify armed conflict. This revivalist narrative inflames sentiments of religious superiority and justifies violence as a means of reclaiming what is portrayed as a stolen holy ground, highlighting the intrinsic religious animus in ISKP’s campaign. Fourthly, the article’s direct calls to "stain the streets" with the blood of Hindus and to punish them in ways that will be remembered reveal a chilling intention to incite genocidal violence. The exhortation for the youth to take up arms and to engage in jihad under the black flag of tawhid underlines the overt advocacy of terrorism, religious hatred, and making Hindus explicit targets for killing. This violence is framed as a sacred obligation, intensifying the peril faced by Hindu communities in Kashmir and beyond and reflecting the worst kind of religious intolerance and advocacy for ethnic cleansing of the Hindu community. Finally, by invoking religious texts and promises of martyrdom, ISKP’s propaganda places its violent agenda within a divine framework, sacralising the fight against Hindus as both inevitable and holy. This glorification of violence not only entrenches the perception of Hindus as enemies of God but also mobilises individuals to commit acts of terrorism in the name of faith. Such messaging sows permanent sectarian hatred and obstructs any possibility of peaceful coexistence between Hindus and Muslims, exemplifying unambiguous religiously motivated hate speech against Hindus that undermines societal harmony. In summary, ISKP’s campaign against Hindus is a textbook case of religious animosity, using Islamist ideology to incite hatred, violence, and division. Their propaganda incites Muslims to commit violence and aims to eradicate the Hindu presence from Kashmir, thus fostering perpetual conflict grounded in religion. Such hate speech is not merely divisive but constitutes a grave threat to peace and human rights of the Hindu community, thereby amounting to an instance of anti-Hindu hate crime. Therefore, this case is being added to the hate crime database of the Hinduphobia Tracker.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
Unknown
Perpetrators Gender
unknown
Sources 
