Hate speech against minorities including Muslims and Christians in India rose by 13% in 2025, with most incidents occurring in states governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, a Washington-based research group said on Tuesday. India Hate Lab documented 1,318 instances of what it called hate speech in 2025, up from 1,165 in 2024 and 668 in 2023, at events such as political rallies, religious processions, protest marches and cultural gatherings. India Hate Lab, founded by U.S.-based Kashmiri journalist Raqib Hameed Naik, is a project of the Center for the Study of Organized Hate, a nonprofit Washington-based think tank. The BJP has previously said India Hate Lab presents a biased picture of India. India Hate Lab says it uses the UN's definition of hate speech, which defines it as prejudiced or discriminatory language towards an individual or group based on attributes including religion, ethnicity, nationality, race or gender.

Source: The Telegraph January 13, 2026 12:21 UTC