Hindus assaulted at South Asian University for observing Mahashivaratri; vegetarian food customs violated
New Delhi, Delhi, India 
25 February, 2025
Case Summary
At South Asian University, Delhi, a few Hindu students celebrating Mahashivaratri faced harassment while requesting vegetarian food during lunch. Although breakfast was served as vegetarian, non-vegetarian food was placed beside the vegetarian dishes at lunch. When the students requested the separation of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food, the mess management initially refused and later escalated the situation by manhandling and assaulting the students with the support of leftist SFI goons. ABVP Delhi State Secretary Sarthak Sharma condemned the incident, emphasising that every student has the right to follow their religious beliefs and traditions. He noted that the university administration had already made arrangements for satvik food in the mess, and forcibly serving non-vegetarian food in this context was insensitive and amounted to ideological intimidation. Sharma demanded strict action against those responsible for disrupting the harmonious atmosphere and harming the religious sentiments of the fasting students. He stressed that violence against students exercising their religious rights is unacceptable and must be addressed firmly to ensure safety and respect for all students.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category- Attack on Hindu religious representations, and within this, the sub-category 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. The other primary category selected is- Attack not resulting in death. The sub-category relevant in this case 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. In this case, the Hindu students were deliberately forced into a situation that violated their religious dietary customs. For Mahashivaratri, a significant festival in Sanatan Dharma, the students observe vegetarian food as a part of their religious practice. By placing non-vegetarian food alongside the vegetarian dishes and refusing to separate them, the mess management, with the support of leftist SFI goons, directly interfered with these religious customs. This act not only disregarded the students’ faith but also actively attempted to defile the religious practices associated with their observance, making it a religiously motivated hate crime. The Hindu students were assaulted when they requested the separation of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food, effectively opposing the actions of the mess management and radical elements attempting to impose non-vegetarian food. The violent response—including manhandling and assault—was aimed specifically at the students for asserting their religious rights and challenging the radicals’ disregard for their faith. Since the initial conflict was rooted in disrespect for Hindu religious customs, and the subsequent physical assault was a direct reaction to the students’ opposition, this qualifies as a religiously motivated hate crime
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Others
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Perpetrators Gender
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