Sacred Hindu temple in Nainital defiled as Muslim families enter wearing shoes
Naini Tal, Uttarakhand, India 
27 January, 2026
Case Summary
In Nainital, Uttarakhand, a Hindu temple named Naina Devi Mandir, a revered Shakti Peeth and divine site of Shakti worship in Hinduism, was defiled by Muslim families. The accused entered the temple while wearing shoes, leading to defilement of the sacred space. According to media reports, a video of this incident went viral on social media. It clearly showed three Muslim families exiting from next to the Hanuman Temple, wearing shoes inside the temple premises where footwear is strictly prohibited. Their shoes remained plainly visible throughout. As per the rules of the Naina Devi Temple, shoes had to be kept in the shoe stand in front of the bench in the temple premises. Different employees were posted to keep the shoes and to stop people from carrying prohibited shoes into the temple. But the perpetrators fearlessly roamed around the temple wearing shoes, openly violating the rules. Someone recorded a video of these Muslim families inside the temple. No information exists about who made the video or when it was filmed. The video spread rapidly across various social media platforms, sparking widespread debate. It exposed gross negligence by the temple management, raising serious concerns. After the video surfaced, the temple administration issued a clarification. When questioned about the viral video, Rajiv Lochan Sah, president of the Maa Naina Devi Amar Uday Trust, said he was unaware of it. However, he added that the ban on the entry of non-Hindus had never been questioned at trust meetings. Everyone was allowed inside, but wearing shoes was prohibited. Following this, the Nainital Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal expressed concern over this video and requested the temple committee to prohibit the entry of non-Hindus into the temple premises.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case is being added to the tracker under the primary category- Attack on Hindu religious representations. The subcategory selected is- Breaking rules of place of worship. Sanatan Dharma is not a religion of one book, which is to say that while it has religious scriptures that form the central tenets of the faith, there are several traditions followed through thousands of years, mostly passed from generation to generation orally. One of these oral traditions or written traditions is the rules of specific temples. Certain temples have rules which are traditional rules, dependent on the worship of the presiding deities. These rules and traditions have been followed for thousands of years whether they find scriptural mention or not. Such traditions are based on the nature and rules of worship of the presiding deity of that temple. Any non-compliance of these traditions owing to animosity towards the faith or for the sake of activism stems not only from the lack of faith in the presiding deity but also disregard for the faith of the devotees of that deity/temple and implicit bias against the faith, the tradition and the deity itself. Since these specific traditions are central to the faith of the devotees of that specific temple and presiding deity, any non-compliance with these traditional rules would be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. The other subcategory selected is- Defiling religious customs. Sanatan Dharma is not a religion of one book, which is to say that while it has religious scriptures that form the central tenets of the faith, there are several traditions followed through thousands of years, mostly passed from generation to generation orally. There are several such customs and traditions that are followed by various Hindus and Hindu sects. Defiling of these traditions and customs is a breach of an individual or group’s religious practices. Such practices can range from dietary restrictions like not eating non-vegetarian food for a certain period of the year, not eating non-vegetarian food at all, not eating beef since the cow is considered holy in Hinduism, the sanctity of religious customs followed in the house (like many ISCKON devotees), etc. Any malicious action leading to the breach of such traditions or defilement of these traditions owing to animosity towards the faith or for the sake of activism stems not only from the lack of faith in the religion itself but also from disregard for the faith of the devotees who follow the customs/traditions and implicit bias against the faith, the tradition itself. Since these specific traditions are central to the faith of the devotees of that specific sect of Hindus, any non-compliance with these traditional rules would be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. This case is a clear instance of a religiously motivated crime, as the accused Muslim families targeted the sacred Naina Devi Mandir, a revered Shakti Peeth, for defilement and desecration by deliberately entering while wearing shoes. Hindu temples are the holiest institutions in Hinduism, serving as living abodes of the divine where deities reside through consecrated idols and eternal worship. For Hindus, these spaces embody profound spiritual purity, cultural identity, and religious devotion, drawing millions for rituals, prayers, and festivals that sustain faith across generations. In this case, the Muslim perpetrators chose this specific Hindu temple, Naina Devi temple, a powerhouse of Shakti worship, and violated its core sanctity with shoes, an act of calculated disrespect aimed at humiliating Hindu beliefs. This targeted intrusion reveals unmistakable religious animosity, transforming a place of reverence into a site of deliberate religious offence. By brazenly breaking the sacred rules of the temple that demand absolute sanctity, the perpetrators desecrated the shrine's purity. Temples enforce strict protocols, including removing shoes at the threshold, to preserve the pristine holiness essential for divine communion and ritual purity in Hinduism. Shoes, carrying the filth of the outside world, symbolise impurity and everyday mundanity, making their presence inside a direct assault on spiritual cleanliness. The perpetrators ignored posted employees, shoe stands, and clear signage, striding fearlessly through forbidden areas next to the Hanuman Temple. Such flagrant defiance of rules Hindus hold inviolable exposes their intent to mock and degrade temple traditions, driven by clear hostility towards Hindu religious practices. Overall, this act amounts to outright defilement of the sacred temple, marking it as a religiously motivated hate crime. By trampling consecrated grounds with shoes, the Muslim families physically contaminated a space Hindus revere as divine, shattering its purity and inflicting deep emotional pain on devotees who view such violations as personal attacks on their faith. The viral video captured their unapologetic exit, shoes prominently displayed, amplifying the insult to millions witnessing the desecration online. This was no careless mistake but a bold provocation against Hindu sanctity, calculated to provoke outrage, erode trust in temple security, and assert dominance over Hindu sacred spaces. Given that this case meets the parameters of a religiously motivated crime, it is being added to the hate crime database of the tracker. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records the date of incidents based on when a crime occurs rather than when it is reported by the media. However, in this case, since media reports have not specified the exact date of the incident, the date when the media reported it, that is, 27 January 2026, has been selected as the indicative incident date for documentation purposes only. In the media reports, even though it states that Muslim families were the perpetrators, the exact number of people has not been specified. However, the video that went viral clearly showcases three individuals: two Muslim men and one Muslim woman. Therefore, for the purpose of documenting this crime, three perpetrators have been recorded. Consequently, the perpetrator count is recorded as '3'.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
both
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