Cow slaughter glorified, Hindus mocked and threatened by Muslim man

Case Summary
Shoaib Malik, an Instagram user from Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, stirred controversy by posting inflammatory content against Hindus and the Mahakumbh. With a following of 19,000, his Instagram wall shows him frequently mocking Hindu religious beliefs, glorifying cow slaughter, and using derogatory language against the Maha Kumbh 2025. In an Instagram post, he not only celebrated "Gauhatya" (cow slaughter) but also suggested that the fire incident at Maha Kumbh 2025 fire was a planned act by a so-called “15-minute” gang. The “15-minute” reference was linked to a 2012 speech by AIMIM leader Akbaruddin Owaisi, where he had made a communal remark stating that if the police were removed for just 15 minutes, Muslims would teach Hindus a lesson. This statement had drawn widespread criticism for inciting hatred and violence. By invoking this rhetoric, Shoaib Malik implied a larger conspiracy against Hindus and religious gatherings like the Mahakumbh. His posts triggered widespread outrage on social media, with many users condemning his actions and demanding strict legal action. People called for an investigation into his online activities to prevent further incitement of communal hatred. Authorities were urged to take action to ensure that such inflammatory content did not spread further.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the prime category of- Hate speech against Hindus. Under this, the first sub-category selected 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. The second sub-category under which this case has been placed is- Violent threats. Violent threats, explicit, implicit or implied, is the most dangerous form of hate speech since it goes beyond discriminatory and prejudicial language to express the intent of causing harm to an individual or a group of people based on their religious identity and faith. There could be several different kinds of threats that are issued to Hindus based on religious animosity. An explicit threat would mean the direct threat of violence towards an individual Hindu, a group of Hindus or Hindus at large. Physical violence, death threats, threats of destruction of property belonging to Hindus and threats of genocide would mean explicit threats against Hindus for their religious identity. Implicit threats may not be a direct threat but implied through the use of symbols of actions – for example – in the Nupur Sharma case, other than explicit threats, there were also implicit threats when Islamists took to the streets to burn and beat her effigies. It implies that they want to do the same to Nupur Sharma – thereby is considered an implicit threat. Violent threats can be delivered in person, through letters, phone calls, graffiti, or increasingly through social media and other online platforms. It would be important to understand that a threat – explicit or implicit, online or offline – to an individual who happens to be a Hindu does not qualify as a religiously motivated threat. Such a threat, while vile and dangerous, could be owing to non-religious reasons and/or personal animosity. To qualify as a religiously motivated threat, it would need to exhibit an indication that the individual is being targeted for religious reasons and/or owing to his/her religious identity as a Hindu. Here, Shoaib Malik’s inflammatory social media posts not only insulted Hindu beliefs but also hinted at potential violence against Hindus. He celebrated cow slaughter and made derogatory remarks about the Maha Kumbh 2025 demonstrating blatant mockery of the Hindu faith and sacred traditions. Further, by invoking the infamous ‘15-minute’ speech, which was originally used to incite communal violence against Hindus, he escalated religious tensions and indirectly issued a veiled threat against Hindus and their religious gatherings. This statement, rooted in a history of violent rhetoric, strongly suggested a dangerous mindset aimed at intimidating Hindus and fueling animosity. The targeted nature of his social media activity, where he regularly posts anti-Hindu content and incites communal discord, establishes a pattern of hostility. Given that the fundamental motivation behind these remarks is contempt for Hindus and their religion, this instance has been added to the tracker under the following category.

Case Status
Unknown

Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male