Religious book containing anti-Hindu slurs and mockery of deities circulated in Moradabad, UP
Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, India 
20 December, 2025
Case Summary
Books denigrating Hindu deities were being distributed in the Civil Lines area, leading to tensions and subsequent violence. On 14 December, in Himagiri Colony of the Civil Lines area located in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, some individuals were distributing a religious book. A man who took a copy later stated that the book contained objectionable remarks against Hindu gods and goddesses. Following this allegation, a disturbance broke out in the locality. Police intervened at the time and facilitated a settlement between both sides. However, the situation escalated in the Majhola area, where individuals accused in the earlier dispute assaulted a follower of a spiritual guru associated with the book distribution. According to reports, a woman distributing the books was beaten, and a person who had purchased the book was also assaulted. Police reached the scene after being informed and managed to bring the situation under control. A follower of the spiritual guru has since submitted a written complaint to the police regarding the incident.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been documented under the chosen primary category: Hate speech against Hindus. Under this, the chosen secondary category is: Anti-Hindu slurs, 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 case has been documented under hate speech against Hindus because its core trigger was the circulation of a religious book containing derogatory and mocking references to Hindu deities. The objection arose only after members of the Hindu community read the contents and found statements that insulted their gods. When sacred figures central to a faith are portrayed in a demeaning or ridiculing manner, it constitutes targeted hostility toward that religious identity. The content did not involve neutral theological critique but included expressions that undermined and mocked Hindu beliefs. Such representations fall within the framework of anti-Hindu slurs and faith-based ridicule when they attack the sanctity of deities revered by millions. Mocking or belittling core religious symbols directly targets the emotional and spiritual foundations of a community. The public distribution of this material in residential areas inhabited largely by Hindus intensified the impact. Circulating content that insults Hindu deities within a Hindu neighbourhood transforms the act into a direct affront to religious dignity. Hate speech does not require explicit calls for violence; deliberate denigration of sacred figures is sufficient to create hostility, alienation, and communal rupture. The fact that tensions emerged only after the content was read reinforces that the reaction was rooted in the substance of the material itself. The issue centred on the mocking of Hindu deities, not on the mere presence of religious literature. By disseminating content that demeaned Hindu gods, the act entered the domain of religiously targeted speech. Given that the incident stemmed from anti-Hindu slurs and the mocking of sacred Hindu beliefs, it meets the criteria under the category of hate speech against Hindus and warrants its documentation in the tracker.
Case Status
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Unknown
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
unknown
Sources 
