After the attack by the Palestinian militant organization Hamas on Israel on October 7, a WhatsApp message circulated in India, claiming that 17 Indians were killed in the Hamas attack. The message also provided a list of the supposed victims. This led to widespread reactions in India. However, later it was revealed that this list was false.
In the following weeks, amid the Israel-Palestine conflict, numerous messages spread through social media platforms in India, warning of potential dangers to Muslims if the ruling party (BJP) did not win the upcoming elections. The state of Jharkhand in India saw warnings like, “Muslims should be cautious unless BJP wins to ensure their safety.”
Fact-checking organizations and experts have pointed out that many of these messages spreading hatred and misinformation are targeting minority Muslim communities. They emphasize that the information is false and the language used is incendiary.
An information verification and selection expert in India stated, “Every local and international incident is being used to spread false information, especially targeting Muslim communities.” Ahead of the national election in May and ongoing state elections in November, false information and hate speech directed towards Muslims have increased significantly.
It has been noted that such divisive statements and manipulative information are being weaponized by players in the political arena to create divisions between Hindus and Muslims. The usage of false information and volatile language is being employed as a tool by sports personalities in the country.
Experts warn that athletes in the country are using such divisive rhetoric and sensationalized false information as a weapon. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Tom Vadakkan stated that the BJP and the government do not encourage inflammatory statements against any community or individual.
In June, during his visit to the White House, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that there is no place for discrimination in India.
