Muslim mob storms into Durga Puja pandal, threatens to break idol if rituals continue, abuses Hindu women
Kolkata, West Bengal, India 
10 October, 2024
Case Summary
On October 11, during Durga Puja festivities, a Muslim mob of about 50-60 people stormed the Puja Pandal of New Bengal Sporting Club in Kolkata's Garden Reach area, threatening to stop the Hindu rituals and warning that they would vandalise the Maa Durga idol if the celebrations continued. The organisers filed a complaint with the police, requesting an FIR. BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari shared the complaint and a video on social media, questioning how such an incident occurred under the jurisdiction of Kolkata Police. He urged strict action against the culprits. The complaint detailed that the mob disrupted rituals, used abusive language towards Hindu women, and threatened to break the Durga idol. Video footage of the incident was submitted to the police.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under three prime categories. The first is- Attack not resulting in death. Under this, the sub-category selected is- Attack against Hindu devotees. Hindu devotees are a few of the easiest targets of religiously motivated hate crimes because during the festival/procession/puja etc, for non-Hindus it is easy to profile their victims on the basis of religion. Hindu devotees come under attack on several occasions by individual non-Hindus or mobs of non-Hindus owing to their animosity against Hinduism, its symbols and tradition/practices. There are several instances of Hindu devotees being attacked while they worship in temples or temporary religious structures, during religious processions, doing bhajan/kirtan/puja in their own homes, in the residential society etc. These attacks are perpetrated by non-Hindus primarily because of their animosity towards Hindus and their faith. In some cases, the trigger for the violence may be non-religious, however, there are two elements that make these hate crimes. First, the Hindus who come under attack are attacked violently while indulging in religious activity. Whether they are in a place of worship or not is immaterial to the crime. When individuals are attacked while indulging in religious practices, the attack in itself is a hindrance to their freedom to practice religion and therefore constitutes a hate crime. Secondly, religious supremacist doctrines and ideologies deem religious practices of Hindus to be offensive ab initio since they are considered “sinful” by these ideologies, worthy to be annihilated by force or coercion. Driven by these religious supremacist ideologies and doctrines, the attacks against Hindu devotees stem from intrinsic animosity towards Hinduism. In some cases, the trigger for the violence may be non-religious, however, it develops into a religiously motivated crime during the course of the violence. Since these attacks stem from animosity towards Hindus and Hinduism, they are considered religiously motivated hate crimes under this category. The second category under which this case has been placed is- Attack on Hindu religious symbols. Under this, two sub-categories have been selected. The first is- Breaking rules of place of worship. Sanatan Dharma is not a religion of one book, which is to say that while it has religious scriptures that form the central tenets of the faith, there are several traditions followed through thousands of years, mostly passed from generation to generation orally. One of these oral traditions or written traditions is the rules of specific temples. Certain temples have rules which are traditional rules, dependent on the worship of the presiding deities. These rules and traditions have been followed for thousands of years whether they find scriptural mention or not. Such traditions are based on the nature and rules of worship of the presiding deity of that temple. Any non-compliance of these traditions owing to animosity towards the faith or for the sake of activism stems not only from the lack of faith in the presiding deity but also disregard for the faith of the devotees of that deity/temple and implicit bias against the faith, the tradition and the deity itself. Since these specific traditions are central to the faith of the devotees of that specific temple and presiding deity, any non-compliance with these traditional rules would be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. The second is- Defiling religious customs. Sanatan Dharma is not a religion of one book, which is to say that while it has religious scriptures that form the central tenets of the faith, there are several traditions followed through thousands of years, mostly passed from generation to generation orally. There are several such customs and traditions that are followed by various Hindus and Hindu sects. Defiling of these traditions and customs is a breach of an individual or group’s religious practices. Such practices can range from dietary restrictions like not eating non-vegetarian food for a certain period of the year, not eating non-vegetarian food at all, not eating beef since the cow is considered holy in Hinduism, the sanctity of religious customs followed in the house (like many ISCKON devotees), etc. Any malicious action leading to the breach of such traditions or defilement of these traditions owing to animosity towards the faith or for the sake of activism stems not only from the lack of faith in the religion itself but also from disregard for the faith of the devotees who follow the customs/traditions and implicit bias against the faith, the tradition itself. Since these specific traditions are central to the faith of the devotees of that specific sect of Hindus, any non-compliance with these traditional rules would be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. The attack on the Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata's Garden Reach area is classified as a religiously motivated hate crime under multiple categories, each highlighting a specific form of hostility displayed by the mob toward Hindu religious practices. A group of 50-60 individuals stormed the pandal, specifically targeting Hindu devotees gathered for the festival. The attackers verbally abused Hindu women and disrupted the rituals, instilling fear and causing physical and emotional distress. This direct aggression toward worshippers demonstrates clear hostility toward the Hindu community. In addition, the mob’s actions violated the sanctity of the religious space by entering the pandal with the intent to prevent religious activities from proceeding. This disruption not only infringes on the freedom to practice religion but also disrespects the sanctity of the place of worship. The attackers further threatened to vandalize the Maa Durga idol, a central and revered symbol in the Durga Puja celebrations. Such a threat is a deliberate attempt to desecrate Hindu religious customs, as the idol is a sacred representation of the goddess. Attempting to destroy or defile it constitutes an attack on the core traditions of the Hindu faith. Moreover, the mob issued violent threats, warning they would break the Durga idol if the celebrations continued. This intimidation reflects an effort to suppress Hindu religious expression through direct threats of violence, signalling an antagonistic stance toward Hindu beliefs and practices. This attack reflects not just a random act of violence, but a calculated attempt to attack the symbols, places, and expressions of Hindu devotion. Given that the fundamental motivation behind these actions is contempt for Hindus and their religion, this instance has been added to the tracker under the following category.
Case Status
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
Unknown
Perpetrators Gender
unknown
Sources 
