'Hindutva' falsely accused of stabbing a Muslim actor by a X handle
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India 
15 January, 2025
Case Summary
An X handle named 'ashoswai' also known as Ashok Swain falsely tried to accuse 'Hindutva' for the attack on Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan. Saif Ali Khan was stabbed multiple times in his own home in Mumbai. The CCTV footage of the building where Saif resided, showed a man running away wearing a saffron scarf. He was suspected of being the stabber. When the pictures went viral on social media, a X handle named Ashok Swain tried to paint that the attacker must have been a 'Hindutva group member'. Ashok Swain wrote, "The attacker of Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan was wearing a saffron colour scarf- The saffron colour scarf is usually worn by Hindutva group members." This depicted anti-Hindu sentiments and prejudice that such X handles display. The accused who stabbed Saif was arrested from Thane and was identified as a 30-year-old Muslim man named Mohammad Shariful Islam Shahzad. Saif Ali Khan suffered multiple stab wounds, including on his neck and near the spine, after the intruder entered his upscale Bandra home and attacked him. The police stated that the attack was done on Saif with the intention of robbery. The police investigation showed no angle of Communal hate unlike what Ashok Swain attempted to portray. The police stated, "Investigation has revealed that he went to Saif's house with the intention of theft. It seems the accused is a Bangladeshi. He does not have any Indian documents. Some things have been recovered from him which show that he is a Bangladeshi." The police had earlier identified the prime accused as Vijay Das, who was previously employed at a pub in Mumbai. After the arrest of the prime accused, the DCP Zone 9 Dikshit Gedam revealed at a press briefing that Das's real name is Mohammad Shariful Islam Shehzad. Police suspected that the 30-year-old accused is a ‘Bangladeshi’, and notified that "there are some seizures that indicate that he is a Bangladeshi national".
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the hate tracker under the prime category- Hate speech against Hindus and within this, the sub-category selected is- Anti-Hindu subversion and prejudice. Under this, one tertiary category namely, 'Anti-Hindu fake news or downplaying', has also been selected. 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. Media plays a specific and overarching reach in perpetuating prejudicial attitudes towards a community owing to unfair, untrue coverage and/or misrepresentation/misinterpretation, selective coverage and/or omission of facts of/pertaining to issues affecting a specific religious group. This type of bias can dehumanise the victim group, making it easier for others to justify harmful actions against them, which aligns with the objectives of hate speech laws aimed at preventing such harm. It is often observed that the media takes a prejudicial stand against the Hindu community driven by their need to shield the aggressor community which happens to be a numeric minority, however, is the one perpetrating violence against Hindus. For example, the media is often quick to contextualise religiously motivated crimes against Hindus, omit or misrepresent facts that point towards religiously motivated hate crimes, justify and/or downplay religiously motivated hate crimes or simply present fake news to stereotype Hindus. Such media bias leads to the denial of persecution and is often used to dehumanise Hindus, leading to justification for violence against them. For example, the media covered several fake allegations of Hindus targeting Muslims and forcing them to chant Jai Shree Ram. Most of these cases were proved false and fabricated after police investigation. These fake news reports were subsequently never retracted or clarified. Such fake news led to the justification of violence and dehumanisation of Hindus based on the argument that since Hindus targeted Muslims and forced them to chant Jai Shree Ram, the dehumanisation of Hindus and violence against them was par for the course and merely a retaliation. Such media bias leads to prejudicial portrayal of Hindus and offers a justification for violence against them and therefore, is considered hate speech under this category. Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan was stabbed multiple times in his Mumbai home by an intruder, initially misidentified as Vijay Das. Ashok Swain, through his X handle, falsely suggested the attacker was linked to Hindutva, citing the saffron scarf seen in CCTV footage. Police later identified the attacker as Mohammad Shariful Islam Shahzad, a Bangladeshi national. 'Hindutva' is often used as a euphemism to make the targeting of Hindus more palatable. Hindutva is essentially a unifying ideology for Hindus which became imperative for Hindus to find and preserve their cultural identity which was being eroded and attacked due to Islamic invasions, British colonisation, Christian theological impositions and conversions. Hindutva is not a destructive ideology, as some attempt to portray, but one that is used as a unifying edifice for Hindus. Hindutva is also often used as a euphemism to target Hindus on the whole and their religious identity and faith. It is essentially semantic jugglery to confuse Hindus into believing that their own persecution by supremacists is somehow 'justified' because the specific victims espoused an ideology (Hindutva) which deserves the onslaught. The fact that the use of 'Hindutva' is merely to mask animosity towards Hindus was evident from the "Dismantling Global Hindutva" conference held in the USA, where speakers unabashedly spoke about how Hindutva and Hinduism are indistinguishable and therefore, the "dismantle Hindutva" one would have to "dismantle Hinduism". The practices of targeting Hindus and their religious and cultural identity and justifying that victimisation and dehumanisation by using euphemisms like "Hindutva" stems from inherent animosity and hostility towards Hindus.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Others
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
