Kali Mata idol immersion procession attacked with stones while moving through Muslim dominated area

Case ID : a0491b6 | Location : Betul, Madhya Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Fri, 31 October, 2025

Case ID : a0491b6

Betul, Madhya Pradesh, India

31 October, 2025

Kali Mata idol immersion procession attacked with stones while moving through Muslim dominated area

Attack not resulting in death

Attack on religious procession

Attack against Hindu devotees

Case Summary

On Saturday, November 1st 2025, the immersion procession of a Kali Mata idol in Madhya Pradesh came under attack. As the procession moved through the Pir Manzil area in Amla town, Betul district, stones were suddenly thrown from behind nearby shops by unidentified individuals, triggering panic among the participants. Several individuals were injured in the attack, including Prafull Singh Tomar, a member of Bajrang Dal, who sustained a head injury. Another member of the group was struck by a stone on the back and was subsequently taken to the hospital for medical attention. In the aftermath, local groups, including members of Bajrang Dal, gathered in front of the Amla police station to protest, expressing concerns over what they described as inadequate security measures during the religious event. The police increased their presence in the area and were investigating the incident to identify those responsible for attacking the religious procession.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category: Attack not resulting in death. Within this, the first subcategory selected is: Attack on religious procession. The outward celebration and display of religious symbols is an intrinsic part of Hinduism. Religious processions on various festivals are age-old traditions and a way to manifest faith and form a part of the religious practices of Hindus. On several occasions, such religious processions come under attack by non-Hindu mobs, in a manifestation of their animosity towards Hinduism and its practices. The reasons cited for such violent attacks are many and range from crossing a non-Hindu resident-dominated area to playing loud music, crossing from an area where there is a religious structure of another faith, etc. The violent attacks are triggered by the outward display of religiosity by Hindus. The attacks are mainly a manifestation of religious supremacist doctrine, which believes that idolatry, essentially the Hindu faith, deserves to be annihilated since the very tenets of Hinduism, its practices and traditions are considered a sin in those doctrines. Since these attacks emanate from intrinsic and doctrinal animosity towards Hindus and Hinduism, it is regarded as religiously motivated hate crimes under this category. The second subcategory selected is: Attack against Hindu devotees. Hindu devotees are a few of the easiest targets of religiously motivated hate crimes because during the festival/procession/puja, etc, for non-Hindus, it is easy to profile their victims based on religion. Hindu devotees come under attack on several occasions by individual non-Hindus or mobs of non-Hindus owing to their animosity against Hinduism, its symbols and traditions/practices. There are several instances of Hindu devotees being attacked while they worship in temples or temporary religious structures, during religious processions, doing bhajan/kirtan/puja in their own homes, in the residential society, etc. These attacks are perpetrated by non-Hindus primarily because of their animosity towards Hindus and their faith. In some cases, the trigger for the violence may be non-religious; however, two elements make these hate crimes. First, the Hindus who come under attack are attacked violently while indulging in religious activity. Whether they are in a place of worship or not is immaterial to the crime. When individuals are attacked while indulging in religious practices, the attack in itself is a hindrance to their freedom to practice religion and therefore constitutes a hate crime. Secondly, religious supremacist doctrines and ideologies deem religious practices of Hindus to be offensive ab initio since they are considered “sinful” by these ideologies, worthy to be annihilated by force or coercion. Driven by these religious supremacist ideologies and doctrines, the attacks against Hindu devotees stem from intrinsic animosity towards Hinduism. In some cases, the trigger for the violence may be non-religious; however, it develops into a religiously motivated crime during the course of the violence. Since these attacks stem from animosity towards Hindus and Hinduism, they are considered religiously motivated hate crimes under this category. This case has been added to the tracker because it is a clear instance of a religiously motivated hate crime targeting Hindus during a sacred religious ritual. The attack in Betul was not an isolated incident but part of an organised act of hostility against Hindu religious processions. The attack began as soon as the procession passed through the Pir Manzil area, and stones were deliberately hurled at Hindu devotees by unidentified miscreants, resulting in serious injuries to several people. This choice of timing, location, and method underscores deliberate provocation rooted in animosity toward Hindu religious practices. Further, this is an attack on Hindu devotees. The violence was directed specifically at individuals engaged in worship and ritual, interfering with their constitutional right to practice religion freely. Hindu worshippers were specifically targeted because of their religious identity and actions. Here, it is also important to note that the fact that the group of Muslims took offence to the procession passing through an area they consider a "Muslim area" reveals a disturbing sense of Islamic supremacy harboured by the attackers. In this case, the perpetrators viewed the predominantly Muslim-occupied region as an exclusive zone where non-Muslims, particularly Hindus, were unwelcome. This sense of entitlement and superiority not only reflects deep-seated prejudice but also highlights an attempt to assert religious dominance over public spaces. The attack on the procession was motivated by this supremacist ideology, where Islamists in the area looked down upon Hindus, believing that they had the right to dictate who could move freely through their community. The act of attacking the procession for simply crossing through this space illustrates a dangerous mindset rooted in exclusion, intolerance and religious animosity, making this case an ideal example for inclusion in a hate tracker. This attack reflects a broader, repeated pattern of aggression against Hindu processions and festivals. Across India, stone-pelting, violence, and desecration of idols often occur during Hindu celebrations, particularly in areas with a history of communal tension. These incidents are rarely spontaneous; they arise from a doctrinal animosity towards Hinduism, with idolatry and ritual worship often vilified as sinful or offensive. The Betul attack is a textbook example of this mindset, showing how Hindu spaces, symbols, and devotees are systematically targeted. Documenting and categorising this case as a religiously motivated hate crime is essential to recognising these patterns of persecution of Hindus. This event demonstrates not only a violation of peace but a deliberate attempt to undermine Hindu religious expression and intimidate devotees through violence. It is also important to mention here that, though the last update was that the miscreants were unknown, regardless, the action stemmed from hatred against Hinduism and resulted in the attack on the religious procession and would therefore be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. Disclaimer: News reports state that several people were injured in the attack, but only provide specifics regarding two individuals who were taken to the hospital. Hence, for documentation purposes, we have conservatively recorded the victim count as 2.