Muslim locals oppose last rites of Hindu villager, communal clash erupts
Darbhanga, Bihar, India 
22 July, 2023
Case Summary
Communal clashes erupted in Darbhanga district, Bihar, on July 23, 2023, when members of the Muslim community disrupted the last rites of Hindu villager Shrikant Paswan in Hariharpur tola-Malpatti village, claiming ownership of the cremation land. Madhubani MP Ashok Yadav highlighted the challenges faced by Hindus in areas with a significant Muslim population, where they encounter restrictions on religious practices like worshipping and wedding ceremonies. The district witnessed several communal incidents recently, including disputes over Muharram flag installations and procession routes. In response, social media platforms were shut down in Darbhanga district from July 27 to July 30, 2023, to prevent the spread of misinformation and maintain communal harmony. While reports suggested disturbing actions during the dispute such as throwing away a burning cremation pyre and urinating on the dead body and attacks on Hindu houses, Bihar Police refuted these claims, stating it was a dispute over funeral arrangements between the two communities. The Station House Officer of Kamtaul denied allegations of mistreatment of the dead body, clarifying that the last rites were performed in the presence of the administration and no such complaints were made by the victim's family. Village chief Ajay Jha, who intervened in the dispute, was later arrested under pressure from Muslims, as alleged by an organisation called All India Muslim Bedari Karwaan. MP Ashok Yadav criticised the Bihar government's appeasement policies and called for a governance model similar to Uttar Pradesh's bulldozer model for the safety of Hindus in Muslim-majority areas.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
Communal clash is a form of collective violence that involves clashes between groups belonging to different religious identities. For a communal clash between Hindus and non-Hindus to qualify as a religiously motivated hate crime, the trigger of the violence itself would have to be anti-Hindu in essence. For example, if there is a Hindu religious procession that comes under attack from a non-Hindu mob and after the initial attack, Hindus retaliate in self-defence, leading to a communal clash between the two religious communities. While at a later stage, both communities are involved in the clash/violence, the initial trigger of the violence was by the non-Hindu mob against the Hindus and therefore, it could safely be termed as an anti-Hindu violence. Further, the trigger would also have to be religiously motivated. In the cited example, the attack by the non-Hindu mob was against religious processions and therefore, can be concluded to be religiously motivated. In some cases, the trigger may be non-religious, however, it develops into religious violence against Hindus at a later stage. In such cases too, the foundational animosity towards Hindus becomes the motivating factor of the crime and therefore, it would be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime against Hindus under this category. The other sub-category relevant to this case is 'attacked for Hindu identity'. 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.
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
Unknown
Perpetrators Gender
unknown
Sources 
