Hindus and their faith insulted as Muslim man spews hate, calls Hindus ‘enemies’, demands demolition of Hindu temple
Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, Pakistan 
25 November, 2023
Case Summary
During a street interview in Pakistan, a Muslim man expressed open hostility towards Hindus while responding to a question about the government's decision to demolish a Hindu temple and convert the site into a cafe. Endorsing the move, he described Hindus as the "enemies" of Muslims, asserted that they should not be allowed to worship in Pakistan, and said that the Hindu temple should be demolished and converted into a coffee shop. The remarks were made during a street interview conducted by the Pakistani media channel Daily Swag. The interviewer asked the man for his views on the reported demolition of a Hindu temple to make way for a café and whether Hindus should be allowed to practise their religion in Pakistan. In response, the man endorsed the demolition, rejected the idea of permitting Hindus to worship, and reiterated that Hindu temples should be razed. Throughout the exchange, he repeatedly expressed hostility towards Hindus and their places of worship, portraying their continued religious presence in Pakistan as unacceptable. The video in which the Muslim man was seen making the disrespectful remark was an undated one. However, the earliest reference to a similar incident dates back to late November 2023, when the historic Sharda Peeth in Pakistan was demolished to expand a coffee house for soldiers inside PoK. In late November 2023, the boundary wall of the Sharda Peeth complex had been demolished to facilitate the expansion of a coffee house project. Hindu organisations, Kashmiri Pandit groups, and heritage activists said that altering the precincts of a protected religious site undermined its sanctity and historical character. Following the reports, the Save Sharda Committee and the Dara Shikoh Foundation raised objections and appealed to authorities, including UNESCO, seeking the protection and preservation of the historic shrine.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
The primary category selected in this case is: Hate speech against Hindus, with the subcategory selected as: Anti-Hindu slur and mocking faith. Anti-Hindu slurs and the deliberate mocking of the Hindu faith owing to religious animosity involve the usage of derogatory terms, stereotypes, or offensive references to religious practices, symbols, or figures. One of the common anti-Hindu slurs used against Hindus is “cow-worshipper” and “cow piss drinker”. The intention of using this term is to demean and mock Hindus as a group and their religious beliefs since Hindus consider the cow holy. Additionally, some symbols and the slurs attached to them have a historical context that exacerbates the insult, hate, stereotyping, dehumanisation and oppression against Hindus. Cow worship has been used for centuries to denigrate Hindus, insult their faith and oppress Hindus specifically as a religious group. There has been overwhelming documentation about how cow slaughter has been used to persecute Hindus with cow meat being thrown in temples and places of worship. There has also been overwhelming documentation where cow meat (beef) has been force-fed to Hindus to either forcefully convert them to Islam or denigrate their faith. Apart from cow worship, the Swastika – which holds deep religious significance for the Hindus – has also been misinterpreted and distorted to use as a slur against Hindus. Similarly, the worship of the Shivling has been used by supremacist ideologies and religions to denigrate Hindus owing to religious animosity. Such slurs and denigration stem out of inherent animosity and hate towards Hindus and their faith, therefore, it is categorised as hate speech targeted at Hindus specifically owing to their religious identity. This incident has obvious religious markers as the Muslim man portrayed an entire religious community as hostile by referring to Hindus as "enemies". Such remarks do not criticise specific actions or viewpoints but instead target people based solely on their religious identity. Labelling the entire Hindu community as an enemy contributes to prejudice, social exclusion, and hostility against its members. The second religious marker is that the Muslim man also opposed allowing Hindus to worship their deities in Pakistan. The right to worship is a fundamental aspect of religious freedom. Denying an entire community the ability to practise its religion because of its religious identity and minority status expresses intolerance towards that faith. The statement rejects the legitimacy of Hindu religious practices rather than engaging with any specific conduct or issue, making the hostility directed at the religion and its followers as a whole. Another aspect that underscores the anti-Hindu nature of the incident is the Muslim man's explicit endorsement of the demolition of a Hindu temple and its conversion into a coffee shop. Hindu temples are not merely physical structures but sacred spaces where devotees worship, perform rituals, celebrate festivals, and preserve centuries-old religious traditions. They also serve as important centres of cultural continuity, religious education, and community life. Calling for their demolition, therefore, goes beyond advocating the removal of a building; it amounts to endorsing the destruction of institutions that embody Hindu faith, identity, and civilisational heritage. Such remarks reflect hostility towards the Hindu community's right to preserve and practise its religion through its places of worship. The remarks assume greater significance because they were made in the context of the reported demolition of the boundary wall of the historic Sharda Peeth temple complex in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Dedicated to Goddess Sharada (Saraswati), Sharda Peeth is one of Hinduism's most revered ancient centres of learning and worship and holds immense religious, historical, and civilisational significance. Altering the precincts of such a sacred site compromises its sanctity and diminishes the historical character of a shrine that has, for centuries, symbolised Hindu scholarship, spirituality, and pilgrimage. For the Kashmiri Pandit community in particular, Sharda Peeth represents far more than a historical monument. It embodies their ancestral roots, religious identity, and centuries-old connection to Kashmir. Even after Partition placed the shrine under Pakistan's control, it continued to occupy a central place in the collective memory and spiritual consciousness of Kashmiri Hindus. Any damage to or alteration of the temple complex is therefore viewed not merely as a change to a heritage site but as an erosion of a vital symbol of Hindu civilisational and religious heritage. The incident also has to be viewed against the broader backdrop of the shrinking Hindu minority in Pakistan and the gradual decline of many historic Hindu places of worship. Over the decades, several temples have fallen into disuse, suffered encroachments, or become the subject of disputes over their preservation and restoration. In such a context, publicly endorsing the demolition of a revered Hindu temple and expressing support for replacing it with a commercial establishment reflects open contempt for Hindus and their faith. Therefore, the comments made by the Muslim man reflected nothing but his innate animosity and disdain for Hindus and their faith, which is why this incident warrants inclusion in the tracker. Disclaimer: The exact date on which the interview was held could not be independently verified. However, since the demolition of the Sharda Peeth was being discussed in the video, the earliest date when the news of the demolition was reported in the media-26 November 2023- has been kept the the incident date for documentation purposes this case.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
