Lord Ram insulted in inflammatory Instagram video by youth in UP
Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh, India 
15 June, 2025
Case Summary
In the Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh, an inflammatory video insulting Lord Ram was posted on social media by a 22-year-old youth named Suraj Jatav. According to reports, the accused, Suraj Jatav, is a resident of the Hathinala police station area of Sonbhadra. The objectionable video was uploaded to his Instagram account, and the comments made were offensive to Lord Ram and disrespectful to Hinduism. News of the video sparked anger among local Hindu organisations. The police became aware of the incident after the objectionable video went viral on X (formerly Twitter), prompting them to register a case and apprehend the accused under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Circle Officer Harsh Pandey stated, "Such actions could have disturbed communal harmony and posed a threat to public peace." To maintain law and order, the police registered a case against Jatav under BNS sections 196 (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and acts prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony) and 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), as well as under provisions of the Information Technology Act. The accused was arrested and presented before a court, which subsequently remanded him to judicial custody.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category- Hate Speech against Hindus. Within this, the subcategory 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. Another primary category relevant in this case is- Attack on Hindu religious representations. Within this, the subcategory selected is- Iconoclastic representation of Hindu gods and goddesses. An icon is a symbol of someone or something that is revered, or a religious representation of a spiritual ideal. Iconography is of vital significance in the Hindu milieu. It helps connect people’s spiritual beliefs with the real world. Iconography within the Hindu faith takes several shapes and forms. Murtis are of most significance to Hindus, to which daily rituals, prayers and offerings are done. Besides the murtis, there are several other symbols which have deep significance in the Hindu faith – the Om and Swastika for example. Any iconoclastic representation of these symbols, images and murtis is an affront to the religious beliefs and faith of the Hindu community itself since the symbols and icons are deeply religious in nature. In this sub-category of crime, we would record hate crimes and iconoclastic representations, in words, art, or any other form of representations of symbols that hold religious significance for the Hindu community. Since these symbols, icons and murtis are central to the Hindu faith, any iconoclastic representation of these symbols is born out of animosity towards the faith itself, manifesting itself through these symbols and therefore, these representations would be considered religiously motivated hated crimes. The incident in Sonbhadra, where a video and photos insulting Lord Ram were posted on social media, constitutes hate speech against Hindus because it involves deliberate and public expressions intended to insult and provoke the religious sentiments of the Hindu community. In this case, the video and accompanying comments were not merely expressions of personal opinion but were designed to offend and disrespect core Hindu beliefs, specifically targeting a revered deity and, by extension, the followers of Hinduism. Hindu Deities are an integral part of the Hindu religion, and Lord Ram is one of the most revered deities in Hinduism. Any attempt to mock or insult any revered Hindu deity is born out of animosity towards Hinduism. In this case, the objectionable video was a direct attack on the sanctity of the Hindu faith. It was, in fact, not a random or misguided act, but a calculated and premeditated effort to attack Hinduism and the larger Hindu society. Such acts are considered hate speech because they go beyond criticism or debate and instead seek to denigrate a religious group, in this case, the Hindus, and their revered deities, thereby fostering animosity against the Hindu community. The content of the video, as described, was deemed so inflammatory that it provoked outrage among local Hindu organisations and was perceived as a threat to communal harmony. Such instances of denigrating Hindu deities are a result of deep-seated religious animosity towards Hindus and their faith. In recent times, social media has increasingly become a platform for anti-Hindu hate, with derogatory memes, videos, and messages targeting Hindu religious symbols, practices, and deities. Such content is recognised as part of a broader pattern of Hinduphobia and religious hate crimes online. This deliberate targeting of revered religious deities firmly establishes this act as a religiously motivated hate crime; therefore, it is being categorised under the hate crime database. Disclaimer: It is important to clarify that the report does not specify the exact date when the post was posted. Therefore, for documentation purposes, we have recorded the date based on when the incident was reported in the media.
Case Status
Case sub-judice
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Others
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
