Hindu boy assaulted by Muslim youth for opposing Pakistan-sponsored Islamic terrorism; supporting 'Operation Sindoor' launched to avenge Pahalgam Hindu massacre
Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India 
6 May, 2025
Case Summary
In Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, a 12-year-old Hindu boy was stabbed by a Muslim youth. The trigger was a discussion on ‘Operation Sindoor’, launched by India to avenge the brutal massacre of Hindu tourists by Pakistan-backed Islamic terrorists in Pahalgam. Surjeet, the 12-year-old minor Hindu boy, had gone to the vegetable market, where he started discussing Operation Sindoor with some people present there. Surjeet commented against Pakistan. A Muslim youth, Moeed Khan, got enraged over the discussion on India’s military operation against Islamic terrorists and their terror camps based in Pakistan. He did not like Surjeet's comment against Pakistan. He asked Surjeet not to comment against Pakistan. This resulted in a verbal war, and Moeed started using abusive language. Moeed Khan then injured the minor, slashing his hand with a knife. It was reported that another youth named Vakil was involved in the attack. The Muslim youths also raised Pakistan Zindabad slogans. The incident took place in the Powayan area of Shahjahanpur. Surjeet was admitted to the local hospital for treatment. After this, the people who were present there roughed up Moeed Khan. The other youth managed to run away from the spot. People of Hindu organisations who reached the location initiated a protest against the incident. The accused, Moeed Khan, was arrested by the police, and the case was being investigated. India carried out ‘Operation Sindoor’ on May 7, 2025, destroying nine terrorist camps in Pakistan in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. The Pahalgam Hindu massacre was a deadly Islamic terrorist attack that took place on April 22, 2025, in the Pahalgam region of Jammu and Kashmir, where Islamic terrorists specifically targeted Hindu tourists, asking their religion before executing them. India strongly condemned this act of Islamic terrorism, particularly emphasising the brutality of targeting people solely based on their religious identity. The military operation was a firm retaliation aimed at dismantling the terror camps in Pakistan harbouring and training Islamic terrorists responsible for the Pahalgam Hindu massacre.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category of - Attack not resulting in death. The sub-category selected is - Attacked for opposing radicals or trying to save victim. In several cases, Hindus are attacked for opposing religiously motivated crimes being committed against a fellow Hindu or simply for voicing an opinion opposing radical elements, who either have in the past or continue to persecute Hindus. In such cases, the initial attack against the victim, against which the Hindu was trying to defend the victim, would also need to be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime. Since the initial crime itself was religiously motivated and the subsequent crime of attempting to save the victim or speaking against the radical elements ends up inviting a violent attack, it would also be classified as a religiously motivated hate crime under this category. The incident involved the stabbing of a 12-year-old Hindu boy, Surjeet, by a Muslim youth, Moeed Khan, after the minor expressed support for India’s military action, Operation Sindoor, against Pakistan-sponsored Islamic terrorism. The provocation for the attack was Surjeet's vocal opposition to Pakistan and Islamic terrorism during a public discussion. Moeed Khan's violent response, including slashing the boy with a knife and shouting “Pakistan Zindabad,” underscores the communal motivation behind the assault. The attack was not random or personal but clearly triggered by the victim's Hindu identity and his stance against radical Islamist elements. The attacker, Moeed Khan, not only responded violently to the child’s opinion but also raised slogans like "Pakistan Zindabad", thereby inserting a religious and ideological dimension into the act of violence. Here, one could argue that the slogan of Pakistan Zindabad can be considered anti-India and pro-Pakistan, but not anti-Hindu. However, raising slogans such as Pakistan Zindabad not only show pro-Pakistan sentiments, but also anti-Hindu sentiments. It is pertinent to note that Muslim extremists harbour specific animosity towards Hindus and their faith and also view India as a Hindu collectivity. The very basis of the partition of India was that the Muslims believed that Islam was a nation unto itself, which could not survive with a Hindu collectivity like India. Further, Muslims often believe in transnational unity - or the Ummah - which is a belief that all Muslims across the world are a nation unto themselves and therefore, loyalty as far as the nation-state is concerned lies with the Muslim collectivity and not with a Hindu collectivity like India. This would also mean that the slogan Pakistan Zindabad is about hailing a Muslim collectivity and an expression of transnational loyalty and anti-Hindu sentiments. For that reason, any slogan which expresses transnational loyalty, faith in the Ummah, is automatically a slogan against Hindus and the Hindu collectivity. Thus, this case is added to the hate crime database.
Victim Details
Total Victim
1
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 1
- Female 0
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 0
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 1
Age Group
- Minor 1
- Adult 0
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Case sub-judice
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
