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Leicester: How targeted attacks on Hindus and misinformation campaigns, from ‘Muslim girl abduction attempt’ to ‘mosque attacked’, unfolded

Muslim activist Majid Freeman, who has been at the helm of this disinformation campaign about Hindu mobs attacking Muslims, was even fact-checked by the Leicester Police.

Leicester City in England’s East Midlands region has witnessed a sharp increase in targeted attacks against the Hindu community. The orgy of violence by Islamists began soon after India clinched victory against Pakistan in the group stage match of the Asia Cup on August 28.

According to a Hindu organisation (@INSIGHTUK2), a casual banter between Indian fans and Pakistani supporters turned serious when the latter snatched and disrespected the Indian tricolour. The man, dressed in black, was seen pushing and shoving Indian supporters who came on his way.

Soon after, the police took cognisance of the matter but added to the raging misinformation by Islamists that religious slurs were hurled in Hindi.

In a letter to the Leicester Council of Faiths on August 31 this year, Chief Inspector Paul Allen falsely claimed that a small group of people called for the death of Muslims and Pakistan. He alleged that the provocative slogans were raised in Hindi, indicating that it must have been the handiwork of the Indian Hindu diaspora.

His email, the transcript of which has now gone viral on social media, was in reference to a minor scuffle that took place in Belgrave Road of Leicester. The grave assertion made by police chief Paul Allen gave a free licence to Islamists to unleash havoc on the Hindu community.

On the following day i.e. September 1, he issued a clarification on the matter and rubbished his own claims. He said, “On Tuesday (August 28) afternoon it was reported that the chanting which had taken place, some of which was captured on video and was circulated on social media, included the phrases (in Hindi) “Death to Pakistan” and “death to Muslims”.

“We have investigated this and can find no verifiable evidence that there were any chants of “death to Muslims”. This is significant in terms of the context and I would encourage you to share this with interested parties,” Paul Allen stated on September 1, 2022. However, it was too late by then.

India and Pakistan again met at the Super 4 stage of the Asia Cup. After Pakistan succeeded in settling scores on the field, its supporters attacked a Hindu home celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi.

“Eggs were thrown into the house, attempted knifing of a young Hindu male and his aunt was punched on the nose when she came to save him. The incident took place while guests were arriving for the Ganpati Darshan,” informed Insight UK.

The accused men also received overwhelming support from their co-religionists on social media.

The Leicester Police again took cognisance of the matter. Both Hindu and Muslim leaders made a joint appeal on September 5 in the hopes of restoring peace in the city.

Screengrab of the tweets by the poli

“Hindus listened to their leaders but 100s of Muslims, some from outside Leicester gathered & orchestrated approx 50 Hindu hate attacks. 1 Hindu youth was stabbed & another barely escaped. Hindu homes attacked, windows broken & Bhagwa flag debased,” informed the Twitter handle.

The orgy of violence did not stop. Homes, cars and properties belonging to the Hindu community, which were easily identifiable with sacred symbols, were damaged.

While speaking to Opindia, research scholar Sarah L Gates said, “This was a planned clean out aka religious cleansing. They want to purge Hindus.”

In order to control the situation, Chief Superintendent Adam Slonecki granted dispersal and stop search powers to the police. “Incidents of violence will not be tolerated and the orders have been authorised to protect our communities and provide safety to those living in the area,” it said in a statement.

On September 16, the police informed that a total of 27 people were arrested in connection with the violence.

Recently, a Hindu temple came under attack by Islamists in Leicester. In a viral video, one extremist was seen uprooting a saffron flag affixed to the temple structure.

In a statement, the police said, “Several incidents al violence and damage have been reported to the police and are being investigated. We are aware of a video circulating showing a man pulling down a flag outside a religious building on Melton Road, Leicester.”

“This appears to have taken place while police officers were dealing with public disorder in the area. The Incident will be investigated. Two arrests Were Made…They remain In police custody,” it added.

Weaponisation of misinformation by Islamists

Meanwhile, the Islamists resorted to making outlandish claims to deviate public discourse from the targeted attacks on Hindus. One of the conspiracy theories peddled by the extremists was that a copy of the Quran was ‘ripped apart’ by Hindutva supporters.

Another fake news that gained traction in Islamist circles was the story of an RSS ideologue, who supposedly tried to kidnap a 15-year-old Muslim girl. After dubbing the man as a paedophile, Islamists even leaked his address on Facebook. Later, it turned out to be fake news.

“A full investigation has been carried out. Following extensive inquiries, we have established that the incident did not take place and no offence was committed, “Leicester police informed on September 14.

Islamists also tried to use the troupe of provocation to justify their attacks on the Hindu community. They claimed that Hindus raised anti-Islamic slogans whereas they only chanted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and ‘Vande Mataram.’

Sarah L gates also pointed out how the police did not act against an Instagram handle (@1100786x), belonging to one Dutch Raja of Birmingham. In an Instagram story, he was seen advocating violence against Hindus and asking Muslims and Sikhs to come together and teach ‘RSS Hindutva extremists’, a lesson.

Muslim activist Majid Freeman, who has been at the helm of this disinformation campaign about Hindu mobs attacking Muslims, was even fact-checked by the Leicester Police. However, this did not stop the British Broadcasting Channel (BBC) from interviewing him and setting the narrative in favour of the perpetrators.

Hindus in Leicester are now at the mercy of the police for their safety. With motivated news publications and Islamist groups portraying them as the perpetrators, they are left to fend for themselves.

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OpIndia Staff
OpIndia Staffhttps://www.opindia.com
Staff reporter at OpIndia

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