India
Muslims in India have faced repeated mass violence, from Nellie in 1983 and Hashimpura in 1987 to the riots after the Babri Masjid was torn down in 1992 and the Gujarat killings of 2002. Since 2015 cow vigilante mobs have lynched Muslims, often with police failing to act. Since 2022 state authorities have used bulldozers to punish Muslim families after communal clashes or protests, demolishing homes, shops, mosques and madrasas without due process; the Supreme Court set rules against this in November 2024. In Assam, 1.9 million people were left off the citizens' register, 'declared foreigners' are held at the Matia camp, and Bengali-origin Muslims are evicted from their land. The 2019 Citizenship Amendment Act offers fast-track citizenship to non-Muslim migrants only.
Key numbers
Who is responsible
State governments and police of Assam, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana and Uttarakhand; the Uttar Pradesh PAC (Hashimpura); Delhi Police (named by Amnesty for 2020); the central government of India (CAA, NRC); and mobs and vigilante groups that sources link to Hindu nationalist organisations and BJP politicians.
Timeline
- 1983 Nellie massacre: about 1,800 or more Bengali-origin Muslims killed in Assam in six hours.
- 1987 Hashimpura: PAC men shoot 42 Muslim men and dump them in a canal.
- 1989 Bhagalpur riots; 116 Muslims killed in Logain village.
- 1992 Babri Masjid demolished; riots kill about 2,000, mostly Muslims, incl. ~900 in Bombay.
- 2002 Gujarat: 790 Muslims killed by official count, about 2,000 by others; Naroda Patiya, Gulbarg Society, Best Bakery.
- 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots: 62 killed, over 50,000 displaced, mostly Muslims.
- 2015 Mohammad Akhlaq lynched at Dadri; wave of cow vigilante killings begins.
- 2019 Tabrez Ansari lynched; NRC excludes 1.9 million in Assam; CAA passed.
- 2020 North East Delhi riots: at least 53 killed, most of them Muslims.
- 2022 Punitive bulldozer demolitions in Khargone, Jahangirpuri, Prayagraj and elsewhere.
- 2023 Nuh: 443 buildings demolished after clashes until the High Court steps in.
- 2024 Akhoondji mosque, Haldwani madrasa and Gir Somnath dargahs demolished; Sambhal killings; Supreme Court curbs 'bulldozer justice'.
Records (28)
Nellie massacre
In about six hours on the morning of 18 February 1983, Bengali-origin Muslims were killed in Nellie and nearby villages in central Assam during the anti-immigrant agitation. Official reports put the toll at about 1,800–2,000; unofficial estimates are 3,000 or more. The official inquiry report was kept secret for decades.
1,800–3,000 killed
Source: ThePrint · Outlook India
Hashimpura massacre
On 22 May 1987 men of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) picked up about 50 Muslim men from outside a mosque in Hashimpura, Meerut, shot them and threw the bodies into a canal; 42 were declared dead. In 2018 the Delhi High Court called it a targeted killing and sentenced 16 former PAC men to life.
42 killed
Source: ThePrint · The Tribune
Logain massacre, Bhagalpur riots
During the 1989 Bhagalpur riots, about 116 Muslims were killed in Logain village on 27 October 1989 by a mob reported to be led by a police officer; the bodies were buried and cauliflower was planted over them. The official toll for the whole Bhagalpur violence was 1,070 killed. In 2007, 14 people were sentenced to life for the Logain killings.
115–118 killed
Source: ThePrint · Al Jazeera
Babri Masjid demolished
On 6 December 1992 a Hindu nationalist crowd tore down the 16th-century Babri Masjid in Ayodhya; riots that followed across India killed about 2,000 people, mostly Muslims. In 2019 the Supreme Court called the demolition an egregious violation of the rule of law but gave the site to a trust for a Ram temple, with 5 acres elsewhere for a mosque.
1 mosques & sacred places destroyed2,000 killed
Source: The New Arab · LiveLaw
Bombay riots
After the Babri Masjid demolition, riots in Bombay from December 1992 to January 1993 killed about 900 people; the official toll cited by historian Barbara Metcalf was 575 Muslims, 275 Hindus and 50 others. The Srikrishna Commission named 31 policemen who took part in rioting, arson or looting.
575–900 killed
Source: Wikipedia (Bombay riots) · SabrangIndia
Gujarat 2002 riots
After the Godhra train fire of 27 February 2002, mobs attacked Muslims across Gujarat. The government told the Rajya Sabha in 2005 that 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus were killed, with 223 missing; other counts put the dead at about 2,000, mostly Muslims.
790–2,000 killed
Source: Business Standard · Al Jazeera
Gulbarg Society massacre
On 28 February 2002 a mob attacked the Gulbarg Society housing complex in Ahmedabad and killed 69 people, including former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri. In 2016 a special court convicted 24 people and acquitted 36.
69 killed
Source: Business Standard · The Wire
Naroda Patiya massacre
On 28 February 2002, 97 Muslims were killed in Naroda Patiya, Ahmedabad, the worst single killing of the Gujarat violence; some counts give 125 or more. In 2012, 32 people including former Gujarat minister Maya Kodnani were sentenced.
97–126 killed
Source: The Quint · Wikipedia (Naroda Patiya massacre)
Best Bakery case
On the night of 1 March 2002 a mob set fire to the Best Bakery in Hanuman Tekri, Vadodara; 12 to 14 people were burnt to death. After acquittals in Gujarat, the Supreme Court ordered a retrial in Mumbai, where nine people were convicted in 2006.
12–14 killed
Source: Business Standard · ThePrint
Muzaffarnagar riots
Communal violence in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts from 7 September 2013 killed at least 62 people, 42 of them Muslims, and displaced more than 50,000, mostly Muslims. Human Rights Watch reported in January 2014 that the Uttar Pradesh government was pushing people out of relief camps, where 34 children had died.
42–62 killed42,000–50,000 displaced
Source: The Wire · Human Rights Watch
Cow vigilante killings
Human Rights Watch found that between May 2015 and December 2018 at least 44 people, 36 of them Muslims, were killed by 'cow protection' vigilantes across India, often with police stalling investigations; it cited communal rhetoric by BJP members.
36 killed
Source: Human Rights Watch · Human Rights Watch report
Lynching of Mohammad Akhlaq
On the night of 28 September 2015 a mob in Bisada village near Dadri killed Mohammad Akhlaq over a rumour that his family had slaughtered a cow and eaten beef; his son Danish was badly injured. In 2025 the Uttar Pradesh government moved to withdraw charges against all the accused.
1 killed
Lynching of Pehlu Khan
On 1 April 2017 cow vigilantes attacked dairy farmer Pehlu Khan, 55, and others on the Delhi–Alwar highway at Behror while they transported cattle; he died of his injuries on 3 April. An Alwar court acquitted all six accused in August 2019.
1 killed
Source: LiveLaw · Human Rights Watch
Lynching of Akbar Khan
On 21 July 2018 Akbar Khan, 28, from Nuh in Haryana, was beaten by a mob in Alwar district while returning with two cows. Police took three hours to bring him to a hospital 20 minutes away, where he was declared dead; a local BJP lawmaker demanded the release of the arrested men.
1 killed
Source: Human Rights Watch
Lynching of Tabrez Ansari
Tabrez Ansari was beaten by a mob in Dhatkidih village, Seraikela Kharsawan, Jharkhand, on 17 June 2019 and died on 22 June. In July 2023 a Seraikela court sentenced ten men to ten years for culpable homicide after police dropped the murder charge.
1 killed
Source: Al Jazeera · LiveLaw
Assam NRC excludes 1.9 million
The final National Register of Citizens for Assam, published on 31 August 2019, left out about 1.9 million people (1,906,657), who had to prove citizenship before Foreigners' Tribunals or risk detention.
Source: Business Today · The News Minute
Citizenship Amendment Act
Parliament passed the Citizenship Amendment Act in December 2019, offering fast-track citizenship to non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan; the rules were notified on 11 March 2024. The UN called it 'fundamentally discriminatory in nature' and Amnesty International called it exclusionary.
Source: Scroll · Amnesty International (via ecoi.net)
North East Delhi riots
Communal violence in North East Delhi from 23 to 29 February 2020 killed at least 53 people, most of them Muslims (Al Jazeera counts 40 Muslims), and injured more than 500. Amnesty International found Delhi Police personnel complicit and active participants in the violence.
40–53 killed
Source: Al Jazeera · Scroll
Dhalpur eviction and police firing
During an eviction drive against Bengali-origin Muslim families at Dhalpur, Sipajhar, Darrang district, on 23 September 2021, police fired on protesters, killing Moinul Haque and 12-year-old Sheikh Farid. Government figures put the losses at 1,418 houses, 48 shops and three mosques.
2 killed1,469 mosques & sacred places destroyed
Punitive 'bulldozer' demolitions, 2022
Amnesty International documented the demolition of 128 Muslim-owned homes, shops and places of worship without due process in Assam, Delhi, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh between April and June 2022, after communal violence or protests; at least 617 people lost homes or livelihoods. Khargone alone saw 45.
128 mosques & sacred places destroyed617 displaced
Source: Amnesty International · Scroll
Jahangirpuri demolitions
On 20 April 2022, four days after communal violence, the BJP-run North Delhi Municipal Corporation bulldozed shops and structures in Jahangirpuri; about an hour after the Supreme Court ordered a halt, a bulldozer razed the gate and stairs of a mosque.
Source: Scroll · Amnesty International
Prayagraj: home of Javed Mohammad
On 12 June 2022 the Prayagraj Development Authority bulldozed the two-storey house of activist Javed Mohammad, a day after police named him a conspirator in protests over remarks about the Prophet ﷺ. His wife said the house was in her name; the state called it an illegal party office.
1 mosques & sacred places destroyed
Source: The National (AP) · The Quint
Nuh demolitions after clashes
After violence around a VHP procession in Nuh on 31 July 2023, in which six people died, Haryana authorities demolished 443 buildings (162 permanent, 281 temporary) by the Deputy Commissioner's own count, mostly in Muslim areas. On 7 August the Punjab and Haryana High Court took suo motu notice and stopped the drive.
443–753 mosques & sacred places destroyed
Source: SCC Online · ThePrint
Matia transit camp, Goalpara
Matia in Goalpara is India's largest detention centre for 'declared foreigners', renamed a transit camp. In 2024 it held 211–274 people, including Rohingya; the Supreme Court criticised its 'abysmal' conditions and the state's failure to deport or release detainees.
211–274 detained
Source: Scroll · India Today NE
Akhoondji mosque, Mehrauli
On 30 January 2024 the Delhi Development Authority demolished the centuries-old Akhoondji mosque and the Bahrul Uloom madrasa in Mehrauli, calling them illegal structures in Sanjay Van forest; staff said they were told only minutes before. The Delhi High Court later ordered status quo at the site.
2 mosques & sacred places destroyed
Source: Bar & Bench · Newslaundry
Haldwani madrasa and mosque
On 8 February 2024 officials with a large police force demolished a madrasa and adjoining mosque in Banbhoolpura, Haldwani, as illegal structures on state land. In the violence that followed six people were killed, some with gunshot wounds; a curfew and shoot-at-sight orders were imposed.
2 mosques & sacred places destroyed6 killed
Source: Deccan Herald · The Quint
Gir Somnath mosques and dargahs
On 28 September 2024 Gir Somnath district authorities demolished nine mosques and shrines, 45 homes and other buildings near the Somnath temple at Prabhas Patan, including the Haji Mangrol, Shah Silar, Garib Shah and Jafar Muzaffar dargahs; about 150 people were detained. Petitioners said there were about 10 mosques and 5 dargahs.
9–15 mosques & sacred places destroyed150 detained
Sambhal mosque survey killings
On 24 November 2024, during a court-ordered survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal, clashes with police left at least three Muslim men dead (Naeem, Bilal and Noman), with the toll later reported as up to six; families said they were shot. Police filed cases against more than 2,000 people.
3–6 killed
Source: Al Jazeera · Dawn