Hindu temple on college campus desecrated by Christian principal after Hindu-Muslim student dispute
Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh, India 
15 June, 2025
Case Summary
In the Government Nursing College in Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh, a Hindu temple situated on the college campus was desecrated, and the Shivalinga inside the temple was relocated to another site following a dispute in which Muslim students harassed a Hindu girl because of her religion. A few days prior to the desecration of the temple, several Muslim students harassed a Hindu girl over her faith. After hearing about this, the Christian principal, Swarnalatha Peter, ordered the desecration of the Hindu temple located on the college campus. She then relocated the Shivalinga to a different location. In response, the Hindu students began protesting and demanded that the college reinstate the Shivalinga at its original place. When Hindu girl students protested, the principal initially refused to restore the Shivalinga. Consequently, the Hindu girl students started a hunger strike as a protest. Eventually, the principal conceded. Senior officials and Hindu organisations also supported the girl students in their efforts. Under pressure, the principal reinstalled the Shivalinga in its original location.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category- Restriction/ban on Hindu practices. Within this, the subcategory selected is- Restriction on expression of Hindu identity. An example of the state-affected prejudicial and targeted orders against the Hindu community would be a government denying the right of a Hindu or a group of Hindus to hold a religious procession owing to the animosity of non-Hindu groups. Denial of the religious right of the Hindus to assuage the non-Hindu group which harbours animosity to a point where it could lead to violence against Hindus is not only a failure of law and order but is a prejudicial order against Hindus, denying them their fundamental rights to express their religious identity. An example of a hate crime against Hindus by a non-Hindu would be a non-Hindu institution forcing its Hindu employees to abandon religious symbols that a Hindu would wear as an expression of faith owing to inherent prejudice against the faith professed by the victim or a non-Hindu group of people restricting a Hindu group from constructing a place of worship simply because the demography of the area in which the temple is being built is dominated by non-Hindus. Such actions are driven by religious animosity and/or prejudice against Hindus and their faith and would therefore be categorized as a hate crime. Another primary category selected in this case is- Attack on Hindu religious representations. Within this, the subcategory selected is- Desecration of Hindu religious symbols. Icons and symbols or a religious representation of a spiritual ideal are widely revered in Hinduism. 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. Since these Hindu religious symbols hold paramount importance in Hinduism, any desecration of symbols, icons, murtis, religious representations and manifestations, is driven by animosity towards the faith itself which manifests itself through these murtis, icons and symbols. Therefore, any desecration of these Hindu religious symbols and representations is considered religiously motivated hate crimes under this category. The other subcategory selected in this case is- Attack on Temples. In Hinduism, a temple is the abode of the Deity. The Deity in the Temple is consecrated, thereby, making it a real, breathing entity. Hindus believe that not just the Deity but the temple premises itself are sacred to Hindus since Hindus hold the faith that the entire Temple space is an amalgamation of the divine energy of the deity. Given the central significance of Temples in Hindu Dharma, any attack against a Hindu Temple or its peripheral premises is an attack on the faith itself and is born out of animosity towards the faith, of which, the Temple is a central tenet. Any manner of attack against a Temple and/or its premises would therefore be considered a religiously motivated hate crime. This incident at the Government Nursing College in Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh, constitutes a hate crime against Hindus by targeting their religious identity and practices. The sequence began with Muslim students harassing a Hindu girl specifically for her faith, a clear act of religious intimidation. Such harassment is not merely interpersonal conflict but a targeted attack on a Hindu individual because of her religious background, reflecting anti-Hindu sentiment. The Hindu individual was selectively targeted and harassed by Muslim students due to her religious identity. This showcases that it is an instance of religiously motivated crime against a Hindu. Escalating the situation, the Christian principal ordered the desecration of the Hindu temple on the campus and relocated the Shivalinga, a sacred symbol of Hindu worship. Temple desecration is recognised as a hate crime, as it directly attacks the sanctity of the Hindu community’s place of worship and aims to instil fear or assert dominance over Hindus. In this context, the principal’s actions did not occur in isolation but followed the harassment of the Hindu student, compounding the impact and sending a message of institutional endorsement of religious intolerance against Hindus. Temples hold a unique place in the Hindu society, serving not only as places of worship but also as centres of cultural heritage and community gathering. For Hindus, temples are not mere physical structures; they are sanctified spaces believed to embody the divine presence of Hindu deities. Acts of violence against such spaces are not isolated incidents of destruction but reflect underlying hostility towards Hindu beliefs and identity. The removal of the Shivalinga and the desecration of the temple restricted the Hindu students’ ability to practise their faith openly and safely on campus premises. This not only infringed upon their right to religious freedom but also sought to erase visible symbols of Hindu identity from the educational environment. Such acts mirror patterns seen in other hate crimes against Hindus, where temple desecration is used as a means to intimidate and marginalise the community. By targeting Hindu students and the collective religious symbols of their community, this incident represents a coordinated attempt to suppress the Hindu identity and create a climate of fear and exclusion. The subsequent protests and hunger strike by Hindu students underscore the deep sense of violation and the urgent need for institutional accountability and protection of the religious rights of the Hindu students. As this case meets multiple criteria for a religiously motivated crime against Hindu students and their sacred temple, it is being included in the hate crime database. Disclaimer: While the case involves both the harassment of a Hindu student by Muslim students and the desecration of the temple, the Hinduphobia Tracker has focused specifically on the desecration of the temple and the suppression of Hindu identity of the students, as the institution and its Christian principal played the larger role in supporting the marginalisation of Hindu students on campus and desecrated their temple. Therefore, the perpetrator is identified as a "Christian extremist", and the perpetrator count is recorded as "1".
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
female
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