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ISLAMABAD: A mosque in India&rsquo;s Uttar Pradesh Sitapur district was demolished in a pre-dawn operation on March 30 over alleged encroachment, with rights group Hindutva Watch highlighting the incident on Wednesday. The demolished structure was identified in local reporting as the Syed Hazrat Umar Farooq mosque in Laharpur. Local authorities alleged that the structure stood on government land recorded as a pond and cemetery. District officials said the action followed legal procedure. According to local reports, the administration said notices had been issued and that the demolition was carried out under provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Revenue Code after a tehsil court order. The Sitapur case comes amid a series of similar actions involving Muslim religious structures in Uttar Pradesh. In Sambhal, another mosque was demolished in 2025 after authorities said it had been built on government pond land, with reports describing it as the second mosque demolition in the district within four months. A separate case in Uttarakhand drew national attention in February 2024. In Haldwani, authorities moved to demolish a mosque and seminary they said were built on government land, triggering unrest in which at least five people were killed, according to the Associated Press. Rights groups and opposition voices have said such demolitions reflect a broader pattern in which anti-encroachment drives and punitive demolitions disproportionately affect Muslims.&nbsp; Amnesty International described demolitions of Muslim properties in India as discriminatory and unlawful in a 2024 statement cited in international reporting. The issue has also reached India&rsquo;s Supreme Court. In November 2024, the court condemned arbitrary demolitions, laid down due-process safeguards, and responded to petitions arguing that such actions had disproportionately affected Muslim communities. The Sitapur demolition is likely to add to that debate. While authorities maintain the action was a land-recovery measure, critics say repeated demolitions of mosques and other Muslim properties are increasing scrutiny of how India&rsquo;s secular and constitutional commitments are being applied on the ground.

India

The demolition has renewed scrutiny of similar actions against Muslim religious structures in India, with rights groups and courts raising concerns over selective enforcement and due process.

Demolition of India’s Sitapur Mosque sparks wider concern over pattern

<strong style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; color: rgb(65, 65, 65); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;" id="isPasted">ISLAMABAD: Maharashtra&rsquo;s proposed Freedom of Religion Bill has drawn criticism from civil society groups, minority organizations, and church bodies, which say the measure could deepen pressure on Muslims and other minorities by expanding state and police scrutiny over religious conversion and interfaith relationships. According to The Times of India, the bill proposes prison terms of up to seven years and fines for what the state describes as &ldquo;unlawful religious conversions&rdquo;, including those linked to coercion, fraud or marriage.&nbsp; The report said offences under the proposed law would be cognizable and non-bailable. The Economic Times reported that the bill defines unlawful conversion broadly, including conversion through allurement, deceit, force, misrepresentation, threat, undue influence or fraud, and said such conversions would be treated as null and void. &#39;Anti-love jihad&#39; lawA separate report by The Times of India said the bill requires prior notice before conversion, allows objections to be raised, and places the burden of proof on the accused to show that a conversion was voluntary.&nbsp; The report added that relatives and other persons could lodge complaints, triggering police action. The political language surrounding the bill has added to the concern.&nbsp; The New Indian Express reported that the measure explicitly covers conversions through marriage and provides for tougher penalties in certain cases.&nbsp; Further causing alarm, Maharashtra minister Nitesh Rane described it publicly as an &ldquo;anti-love jihad&rdquo; law.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2033063620129730987&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=c464e5de9888d09f58d326e7e3d235c5a3269724&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 780px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div>That claim itself has been disputed at the national level.&nbsp; In a written reply to the Parliament in 2020, India&rsquo;s home ministry said the term &ldquo;love jihad&rdquo; is not defined under existing laws and that no such case had been reported by central agencies. Opposition has also come from outside party politics.&nbsp; A joint press note carried by Indian Currents said civil society groups had called for wider consultation and warned that such legislation could criminalize personal choice and weaken constitutional freedoms. Critics quoted by various Indian media outlets say the concern is that the bill may be used less to prevent coercion and more to reinforce a wider Hindutva-driven climate in which interfaith relationships involving Muslims are increasingly treated with suspicion, complaint, and legal risk.

Maharashtra’s proposed Freedom of Religion Bill has triggered concern among minority and civil society groups, who say it could widen scrutiny of conversions and interfaith ties, especially involving Muslims.

Maharashtra ‘religion’ bill draws concern over minority rights in India

ISLAMABAD:&nbsp;Security remained on high alert in Sihora town in Madhya Pradesh&rsquo;s Jabalpur district amid communal tensions, two days after clashes between Muslim and Hindu communities, &nbsp;followed by 49 &ldquo;all-Muslim&rdquo; arrests, rocked the area, Indian media reported on Sunday.&nbsp;The police used barricades, foot patrols, and drone surveillance near Azad Chowk in Sihora where a Hindu temple and a mosque face each other.&nbsp;Alongside the official &ldquo;law-and-order&rdquo; updates, fresh social media footage has fuelled claims that Muslims are being targeted and threatened.&nbsp;A video shared on X shows a Hindutva mob using abusive language and hurling rape threats against Muslim women in the area.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2025553747435504107&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=8e272fe2cc394a17364e8280373a213894999c0d&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 921px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div>Similar clips and descriptions were also circulated by rights-tracking channels that document anti-Muslim incidents, alleging attacks on Muslim homes and intimidation of residents in Sihora.&nbsp;<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2025513502807667010&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=8e272fe2cc394a17364e8280373a213894999c0d&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 825px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div>The backstory to the Jabalpur flare-up dates to Thursday night, Feb. 20, 2026. Indian media reported that violence broke out after a temple grill was allegedly broken, leading to stone-pelting and street clashes.&nbsp; Another Indian media outlet, quoting residents of the area, reported the dispute intensified when an evening Hindu ritual at the temple and prayers at the nearby mosque were taking place at the same time, prompting objections and formation of a Hindutva mob.&nbsp; By Friday, Feb. 21, police had stepped up deployments and used baton-charge and tear gas to disperse crowds, while protests were reported outside the police station by right-wing groups demanding strict action.&nbsp; India media reported that around 500 police personnel were deployed as authorities sought to prevent a repeat flare-up.&nbsp; The discrimination allegation is now focused on arrests and access to worship.&nbsp; Another India media publication, citing remarks attributed to the regional IG reported that 49 people, &ldquo;all Muslims&rdquo;, were arrested in the main case linked to alleged temple damage and sent to judicial custody.

Sihora, Jabalpur stayed under heavy security with 49 arrests after a temple-mosque flashpoint; Muslims allege targeted action, worship restrictions, and intimidation, including a viral video showing threats against women.

Temple-mosque flashpoint in India: ‘All Muslim’ arrest claim puts police action in spotlight 

ISLAMABAD: Discrimination against Muslim and Christian minorities in India is being fuelled by two converging trends, the viral spread of generative AI hate content and the rapid expansion of AI-enabled policing and surveillance, warns a report published on Feb. 11 by the Centre for the Study of Organized Hate&nbsp;(CSOH). The report has come ahead of India AI impact summit, 2026, which will be from Feb. 16 to 20. The CSOH report says hate narratives that have circulated for years; often packaged as conspiracies such as &ldquo;love jihad&rdquo; and &ldquo;population jihad,&rdquo; or fuelled through cow-protection and temple-mosque disputes, are now being amplified with synthetic media that looks real.&nbsp;Text-to-image and text-to-video tools can produce photorealistic depictions, caricatures, and &ldquo;evidence-like&rdquo; scenes that reinforce stereotypes, Muslim men framed as violent or criminal, and Muslim women dehumanized through sexualized, non-consensual imagery. Communal targetingMoments of public tragedy are turned into accelerants for communal targeting, with AI-generated visuals circulated alongside inflammatory commentary to cast minorities as villains in the immediate aftermath of attacks or accidents. The report highlights that political messaging has also begun using generative AI directly.&nbsp;Official social media accounts linked to the&nbsp;ruling&nbsp;BJP, have posts that depict Muslims as &ldquo;ghuspaithye/infiltrators&rdquo; and portray opposition leaders as &quot;secretly&quot; aligned with them.&nbsp;A pattern of dehumanizing metaphors is developing, where minorities are rendered as pests or threats, paired with meme-like humor or dramatic background music that helps normalize extreme hostility, especially in battleground states in the run-up to 2026 assembly election such as Assam and Delhi. A second cluster of concerns centers on the state&rsquo;s deployment of AI. Predictive policingIt notes remarks by Devendra Fadnavis, CM Maharashtra,&nbsp;about an AI tool being developed with IIT Bombay to detect alleged undocumented migrants using language cues, an approach that risks profiling Bengali-speaking Muslims and low-income migrant workers.&nbsp;The spread of predictive policing has also been flagged, large criminal databases and facial recognition are systems that can embed historical bias into &ldquo;data-driven&rdquo; enforcement. Examples of this &ldquo;data-driven&rdquo; enforcement referenced in the report include long-running predictive systems used by Delhi Police and expanding surveillance networks in cities such as Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Lucknow.&nbsp;Without transparent safeguards, independent oversight, and clear legal limits, AI risks hardening discrimination into automated, scalable practice, the report states.

Generative AI and predictive policing are fuelling discrimination against India's minorities through deepfake hate speech and automated surveillance. A report from the Centre for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH) warns of these issues.

Articles tagged with "Anti-Minority"

Demolition of India’s Sitapur Mosque sparks wider concern over pattern

Maharashtra ‘religion’ bill draws concern over minority rights in India

Temple-mosque flashpoint in India: ‘All Muslim’ arrest claim puts police action in spotlight

AI enabled hate on the rise in India: Report

Demolition of India’s Sitapur Mosque sparks wider concern over pattern