Stones hurled at Hindu homes and temples after minor scuffle between Muslim vendor and Dalit man
Beawar, Rajasthan, India 
7 January, 2025
Case Summary
In Beawar, Rajasthan, an altercation ensued between a peanut vendor, Mohd Hussain, and a Dalit man, reportedly over payment. The disagreement turned physical, sparking abuse and threats. Soon after, individuals near the cart from Hussain's community began pelting stones at Dalit homes and Hindu temples. The police, led by Deputy Superintendent of Police Rajesh Kasana and other officials, intervened to control the situation. A police force was deployed overnight to maintain order. Authorities arrested five individuals on charges of disturbing peace and communal harmony. The Dalit community expressed frustration, stating that they are frequently targeted in such incidents. According to Premchand Sangeela, a Dalit community leader, harassment near a tea shop close to the Dalit colony had become routine, with women facing lewd remarks from Muslims who gathered there late at night. Any attempt to resist this behaviour was met with violence, including stone-pelting on their homes. Other Dalit leaders, including Dinkar Bharti, criticised the administration for failing to protect their community, citing repeated incidents of damage to homes and vehicles without action against the offenders.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under two prime categories. The first is- Attack not resulting in death. Under this, the first sub-category chosen is- Attacked for Hindu identity. In several cases, Hindus are attacked merely for their Hindu identity without any perceived provocation. A classic example of this category of religiously motivated hate crime is a murder in 2016. 7 ISIS terrorists were convicted for shooting a school principal in Kanpur because they got ‘triggered’ seeing the Kalava on his wrist and tilak that he had put. In this, the Hindu victim had offered no provocation except for his Hindu religious identity. The motivation for the murder was purely religious, driven by religious supremacy. Such cases where Hindus are targeted merely for their religious identity would be documented as a hate crime under this category. The second sub-category selected here is- Communal clash. Communal clash is a form of collective violence that involves clashes between groups belonging to different religious identities. For a communal clash between Hindus and non-Hindus to qualify as a religiously motivated hate crime, the trigger of the violence itself would have to be anti-Hindu in essence. For example, if there is a Hindu religious procession that comes under attack from a non-Hindu mob and after the initial attack, Hindus retaliate in self-defence, leading to a communal clash between the two religious communities. While at a later stage, both communities are involved in the clash/violence, the initial trigger of the violence was by the non-Hindu mob against the Hindus and therefore, it could safely be termed as an anti-Hindu violence. Further, the trigger would also have to be religiously motivated. In the cited example, the attack by the non-Hindu mob was against religious processions and therefore, can be concluded to be religiously motivated. In some cases, the trigger may be non-religious, however, it develops into religious violence against Hindus at a later stage. In such cases too, the foundational animosity towards Hindus becomes the motivating factor of the crime and therefore, it would be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime against Hindus under this category. The second sub-category selected is- Attack on Hindu religious representations. Under this, the sub-category selected is- Attack on Temples. 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. Given the central significance of Temples in Hindu Dharma, any attack against a Hindu Temple or its peripheral premises is an attack on the faith itself and is born out of animosity towards the faith, of which, the Temple is a central tenet. Any manner of attack against a Temple and/or its premises would therefore be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. In this instance, the trigger of the attack was a petty argument between a Muslim vendor and a Hindu man, however, the incident soon morphed into a religiously motivated crime when the Muslim youths gathered and began pelting stones at Dalit homes and Hindu temples. It was clearly the animosity towards Hindus and their faith that united so many Muslims together to launch such a vicious attack on the homes of Hindus and their place of worship, that too over a petty argument. It is important to mention here that the testimonies of the victims reveal that this incident was not an isolated occurrence but part of a recurring pattern of targeted harassment and aggression faced by Dalits at the hands of Muslims in the area. According to Premchand Sangeela, a Dalit community leader, the harassment near a tea shop close to the Dalit colony had become a routine ordeal. Women were particularly vulnerable, enduring lewd remarks from groups of Muslim men who congregated there late at night. Attempts to resist or object to this inappropriate behaviour were often met with violence, such as stone-pelting on Dalit homes. This repeated targeting suggests a deliberate effort to provoke or intimidate the Hindus, driven by deep-seated animosity and intolerance. The fact that the attacks extended to stone-pelting on Hindu temples alongside Dalit homes further underscores the religious undertones of these actions. Such incidents appear to be motivated not by interpersonal conflicts but by a broader intent to either provoke or intimidate individuals based on their religious identity. These acts of unprovoked aggression reflect an alarming level of intolerance and hostility the Muslims in the locality harboured for the Hindus reading there. Given that the fundamental motivation behind these actions is contempt for the Hindu religion, this instance has been added to the tracker under the following category.
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 5 to 10
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
