Hindu temple land targeted and illegally occupied by encroachers in Umaria, Madhya Pradesh
Umaria District, Madhya Pradesh, India 
4 May, 2026
Case Summary
In Pali, Umaria district, Madhya Pradesh, the sacred temple land belonging to two Hindu temples was forcibly encroached upon by a few miscreants. This case came to light when the local administration took significant action to free temple land from encroachment. The land belonging to the Radha Krishna Temple and the famous Mata Birasini Devi Temple in Biharsinghpur, Pali, had been under illegal occupation for years. In fact, the land, belonging to the Mata Birasini Devi Temple in Pali, was donated to the temple by the Agarwal family. A miscreant named Ravindra Motwani and his family had been illegally occupying it for several years. During the operation, led by Sub-Divisional Magistrate Meenakshi Ingle, illegal items stored in the temple premises were confiscated. A team from the Revenue Department arrived on the scene and took strict action. The administration had been receiving continuous complaints about this illegal occupation. Following the action, the team seized the items stored there and placed them in a room within the temple. Possession of the entire land, including the temple shops, has been returned to the temple management. Sub-Divisional Magistrate Meenakshi Ingle stated that Ravindra Motwani had occupied the land donated by the Agarwal family, but it has now been vacated. This action caused panic among the encroachers.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
The primary category selected in this case is- Attack on Hindu religious representations. The subcategory selected is- Encroachment or illicit takeover of temple land/land near temple. In Hinduism, a temple is the abode of the Deity. The Deity in the Temple is consecrated, thereby, making it a real, breathing entity. Hindus believe that not just the Deity but the temple premises itself are sacred to Hindus since Hindus hold the faith that the entire Temple space is an amalgamation of the divine energy of the deity. Not only the Temple but the Temple premises in its entirety are considered sacred by Hindus. In several cases, the premises of the Temple and/or religious centre are illicitly taken over by institutions belonging to other faiths – like the Waqf board or the Church. Other times, the temple property, land or the property of religious centres are illicitly encroached by non-Hindu groups. Any illicit take over or encroachment is a crime an initio, however, when non-Hindu groups illicitly take over or encroach the sacred land of Hindus, it is an affront to the Hindu community and is therefore classified as a religiously motivated hate crime under this category. This incident stands as a stark example of a religiously motivated hate crime, where perpetrators forcibly encroached upon sacred temple land belonging to two revered Hindu temples, the Radha Krishna Temple and Mata Birasini Devi Temple in Pali, Umaria district, Madhya Pradesh. Ravindra Motwani and his family knowingly occupied this holy land donated by the Agarwal family, holding it illegally for years despite its profound religious significance to the Hindu community. Such deliberate desecration of spaces integral to Hindu worship reveals a blatant disregard for Hindu sentiments, driven by anti-Hindu bias, and qualifies this as a clear case of religiously motivated hate crime targeting Hindu sacred sites. Temple land forms an inseparable part of the entire temple ecosystem, carrying immense religious, cultural, and spiritual significance in Hinduism as the foundation for rituals, festivals, and daily worship. Perpetrators like Ravindra Motwani forcibly seized this land for several years, fully aware of its sanctity, which disrupted temple functioning, inflicted harm on the temple ecosystem, desecrated the holiness of the space, and interrupted devotees in their worship and spiritual practices. This prolonged encroachment deliberately undermined the sacredness of the Hindu temple and its environs, hurting the faithful who rely on these spaces for solace and devotion, and cementing the act as a religiously motivated hate crime aimed at eroding Hindu religious life. Encroaching upon temple land deeply wounds the religious sentiments of the Hindu community, as they witness their most sacred temples illegally invaded by anti-Hindu elements who show utter contempt for their faith, traditions, and the inviolable sanctity of these holy sites. Hindus feel a profound sense of violation and betrayal when outsiders trample upon spaces that embody their millennia-old devotion, generating fear, anger, and a chilling message of intolerance. This targeted aggression against Hindu religious identity and sacred precincts by those indifferent to Hindu reverence marks it unequivocally as a religiously motivated hate crime. Such targeting of temples constitutes a direct attack on the entire temple ecosystem, from the land and structures to the priests, rituals, and devotees who sustain it, effectively strangling the lifeblood of Hindu worship. Temples hold unparalleled significance in Hinduism as living embodiments of divinity, community gathering points, and custodians of ancient knowledge, where gods are invoked, and societal bonds are forged through shared faith. Attacks like this encroachment not only physicalise hostility but shatter Hindu sentiments, evoking collective trauma and reinforcing perceptions of systemic anti-Hindu prejudice. Given that this case meets several parameters of a hate crime, it is added to the hate crime database of the Hinduphobia Tracker. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records incident dates based on when the crime occurs. In this case, the report states that the temple land was encroached upon for several years, but the exact date when the crime began is not mentioned. No other date appears in the entire report. Henceforth, the date when the report was published, that is, 5 May 2026, is selected as the indicative incident date. This is recorded for documentation purposes only.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Others
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
