The ‘othering’ of minorities

2026-01-29 - 21:21

AS the calendar turns to early 2026, the global gaze is fixed on India—not for its soaring economic metrics, but for a profound and alarming transformation in its social chemistry. The recent publication of the India Hate Lab (IHL) 2025 Annual Report serves as a clinical autopsy of India’s so-called secularism, revealing a nation where hate speech has evolved from a fringe nuisance into a primary instrument of statecraft. The figures are staggering. In 2025, India witnessed 1318 verified in-person hate speech events, marking a 97% surge since 2023. This is no longer the “fringe” acting out; it is an industrial-scale operation. Nearly 88% of these incidents occurred in states governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), suggesting a symbiotic relationship between political power and sectarian mobilization. This surge is characterized by stochastic terrorism—the use of mass media and public rhetoric to demonize a group so thoroughly that random acts of violence by emboldened individuals become inevitable. By framing Muslims and Christians as “termites” or “existential threats,” the state effectively outsources its violence to the mob, maintaining a thin veil of plausible deniability while achieving its majoritarian goals. The “Hindu Rashtra” project has moved beyond being just the ideology and into the very architecture of Indian law. The report documents how conspiracy theories like “Love Jihad” and “Land Jihad” are no longer just slogans but the basis for legislative action. In 2025, the narrative expanded to include absurdities like “Thook (spit) Jihad” and “Education Jihad,” designed to criminalize the most mundane aspects of minority life.This ideological shift is most visible in the “Bulldozer Justice” phenomenon, where the state bypasses the judiciary to demolish the homes of dissenters and minorities. It is a visual and physical manifestation of a new social contract: one where citizenship is tiered, and constitutional protections are contingent upon religious identity. The international community’s response has shifted from concern to active alarm. The US Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) now ranks India 4th globally for the risk of mass killings. This is not mere hyperbole; it is a statistical warning based on the same indicators—dehumanization, polarization, and institutional complicity—that preceded historical genocides. Genocide Watch has maintained India at Stage 8 (Persecution), noting that the “othering” of 200 million Muslims and 30 million Christians has reached a fever pitch. The 2025 report specifically highlights a 41% increase in anti-Christian rhetoric, signaling that the majoritarian project is widening its net of “internal enemies.” India stands at a crossroads. The normalization of hate has created a culture of impunity where the perpetrators of lynchings are feted as heroes, and journalists who document these crimes are silenced. The data from 2025 suggests that the transition to a de facto Hindu Rashtra is nearly complete. The future of India as a pluralistic democracy depends on whether its institutions—the judiciary, the media, and the civil service—can reclaim their independence from the majoritarian tide. Without a radical shift toward legal accountability, the so-called world’s largest democracy risks becoming its most cautionary tale. —The writer is an alumnus of QAU, MPhil scholar and a freelance columnist, based in Islamabad. (fa7263125@gmail.com)