Muslim youths assault a minor Hindu boy in UP’s Kaushambi for sporting a ‘Tilak’

Case ID : b7c3ee7 | Location : Kaushambi District, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Mon, 21 August, 2023

Case ID : b7c3ee7

Kaushambi District, Uttar Pradesh, India

21 August, 2023

Muslim youths assault a minor Hindu boy in UP’s Kaushambi for sporting a ‘Tilak’

Attack not resulting in death

Attacked for Hindu identity

Case Summary

In Kaushambi district, Uttar Pradesh, a minor lodged a formal complaint with the police after being assaulted for wearing a 'Tilak', as reported by Organiser. The assailants, identified as Qasim and Ejaz, attacked the victim on August 22 and then fled after a complaint was filed. The victim, a 13-year-old boy, faced derogatory remarks for wearing the Tilak outside the Panchayat office in Dhamava village. When he responded to the insults, he was physically assaulted. According to the FIR, the victim was verbally attacked and physically assaulted by Qasim and Ejaz for sporting a Tilak. The assailants urged him to convert to Islam and offered him money, but when he refused, they assaulted him, stole money, and damaged his mobile phone.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

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. In this instance, the Muslim youths were triggered by the Tilak the Hindu boy was sporting. In Hinduism, Tilak holds deep religious, cultural, and spiritual significance. It symbolizes protection, blessings, unity, and commitment to spiritual and ethical principles. Its use across various rituals and ceremonies underscores its importance in the Hindu way of life and by attacking a Hindu for sporting a Tilak, the perpetrators displayed her deep disdain towards the religion, which is why this case becomes worthy of being documented under this category of the hate tracker.