Hindutva is a political ideology encompassing the cultural justification of Hindu nationalism and the belief in establishing Hindu hegemony within India. The political ideology was formulated by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in 1922. It is used by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), the current ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and other organisations, collectively called the Sangh Parivar.
Babri Masjid was a mosque in Ayodhya, India. It has been claimed to have been built upon the site of Ram Janmabhoomi, the legendary birthplace of Rama, a principal deity of Hinduism. It has been a focus of dispute between the Hindu and Muslim communities since the 19th century. According to the mosque's inscriptions, it was built in 1528–29 by Mir Baqi, a commander of the Mughal emperor Babur. Before the 1940s, the masjid was officially known as "Masjid-i-Janmasthan". The mosque was attacked and demolished by a Hindu nationalist mob in 1992, which ignited communal violence across the Indian subcontinent.
Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) is a public state university at Summer Hill, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. It was established on 22 July 1970 by The Himachal Pradesh University Act, 1970 by the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly, before the emergence of Himachal Pradesh as a full state of India.
Shimla is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summer capital of British India. After independence, the city became the capital of East Punjab and was later made the capital city of Himachal Pradesh. It is the principal commercial, cultural and educational centre of the state.
"Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram" is a bhajan widely popularised by Mahatma Gandhi and set to tune by Vishnu Digambar Paluskar in Raga Mishra Gara.
The Ayodhya dispute is a political, historical, and socio-religious debate in India, centred on a plot of land in the city of Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. The issues revolve around the control of a site regarded since at least the 18th century among many Hindus to be the birthplace of their deity Rama, the history and location of the Babri Masjid mosque at the site, and whether a previous Hindu temple was demolished or modified to create the mosque.
Sanjauli is a major populous part of the city of Shimla, in the Shimla district of Himachal Pradesh, India.
Government College, Sanjauli, Shimla-6 is a college located in Sanjauli suburb of Shimla. It is affiliated with Himachal Pradesh University in Shimla, India. It is one of the most famous colleges in Himachal Pradesh. Students of the college are commonly known as Sanjaulians.
The demolition of the Babri Masjid was carried out on 6 December 1992 by a large group of activists of the Vishva Hindu Parishad and allied organisations. The 16th-century Babri Masjid in the city of Ayodhya, in Uttar Pradesh, India, had been the subject of a lengthy socio-political dispute, and was targeted after a political rally organised by Hindu nationalist organisations turned violent.
The All India Ulama & Mashaikh Board is an Islamic Non-governmental Organisation and a representative body consisting the Sajjadanasheens of Dargahs, Imams of Mosques, the Teacher and Muftis working in the Madrasa belonging to the Barelvi movement of Sunni Islam. It was established in all the states and territories of India. It was formally founded by Mohammad Ashraf Kichhouchhwi.
2015 Ballabhgarh riot refers to the attacks on 400 Indian Muslim villagers of Atali village Ballabhgarh, Haryana by Hindu locals over the issue of land for a mosque, which was allotted to the Haryana Waqf Board. The riot left nearly 400 Muslims homeless and exodus of many families.
Arshad Madani is an Indian Islamic scholar and the current Principal of Darul Uloom Deoband. He succeeded Asad Madni as the eighth president of the Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind. The organization split around 2008, and Madani continues to serve as the president of its Arshad faction.
The final judgement in the Ayodhya dispute was declared by the Supreme Court of India on 9 November 2019. The Supreme Court ordered the disputed land to be handed over to a trust to build the Ram Janmabhoomi temple. The court also ordered the government to give an alternative 5 acres of land in another place to the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board for the purpose of building a mosque as a replacement for the demolished Babri Masjid.
The Muhammad bin Abdullah Masjid or Ayodhya Mosque is a mosque being constructed in Dhannipur, Ayodhya district, Uttar Pradesh, at a site designated by the Supreme Court of India following its verdict on the Ayodhya dispute case.
Khalid Saifullah Rahmani is an Indian Muslim scholar, author and jurist who serves as the fifth president of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board. He is the general secretary of Islamic Fiqh Academy of India. He has authored books including The Islamic Jurisprudence: Introduction and Codification and Kitāb-ul-Fatāwa.
A Hindu–Muslim clash occurred in Delhi's Jahangirpuri area on 16 April 2022, in the midst of a Hindu procession on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti. The clash took place during the last of three processions organised that day by Bajrang Dal, a right wing Hindu group nationalist organization. The procession, whose members were reportedly brandishing swords and pistols, halted near a mosque where Muslims were holding Ramadan prayers, while blasting music from loudspeakers and shouting abusive slogans. A conflict broke out, during which both groups pelted the other with stones and other objects; a few shots were fired as well. A number of people were injured, including a police officer. Twenty three people were arrested, including two juveniles.
Bulldozer justice is a term referring to the use of the bulldozer, an industrial machine, as a political tool and symbol in Indian politics, particularly in the politics of Uttar Pradesh, starting in 2017. This began with the evoking of the machine by UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath of the BJP. While bulldozers are routinely used across India to remove illegal constructions, the bulldozer has been portrayed as a symbol of law enforcement in addressing property-related crimes, communal violence rioters and alleged criminal activity. Demolition of structures has been increasingly reported in states with BJP leadership as a measure against illegal constructions. Following its usage in political messaging in Uttar Pradesh, the bulldozer was used in Madhya Pradesh to convey political messages aimed at showing a strong stance against criminals. Some narratives suggest that certain communities perceive the use of bulldozers as biased. In particular, properties belonging to and settlements primarily populated by Muslims have been disproportionately targeted. Critics also argue that giving up on the rule of law and adopting "bulldozer justice" is the initial move toward an authoritarian society. In such a society, the safety, life, and liberty of individuals would depend on the arbitrary decisions of state officials.
Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu is an Indian politician. He is serving as the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh. As a member of Indian National Congress, he is a 4-time and incumbent MLA from Nadaun assembly constituency of Himachal Pradesh. He was the president of the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee from 2013 to 2019.
In the context of Hindutva, iconoclasm might refer to the targeting and alteration of structures, symbols, or places of worship that are associated with non-Hindu religions, particularly Islam. Mosques and other religious and cultural institutions esteemed by Muslims, who make up 15% of India's population, deemed to be in opposition to Hindu values have long been targets of destruction and violence at the hands of followers of Hindutva political ideology. Attacks of this kind against Muslims have alarmingly risen in recent years, with the number of attacks against members of the Islamic community increasing since 2014. These attacks have ranged from random acts of street violence to the razing of Mosques, including an instance in 2020, where in just 48 hours, 14 Mosques were burned by Hindutva nationalists.
On 24 November 2024, violence erupted during a court-ordered Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid, a 500-year old mosque in Sambhal, protected by ASI, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The survey was initiated following claims that the mosque was constructed on the ruins of a Hindu temple allegedly demolished during the Mughal period. While the first survey had proceeded peacefully, tension escalated during the second survey when the wuzu khana used before prayer in the mosque, had been drained, allegedly to check the depth, leading to rumours of the mosque being dug up. The President of the Masjid committee tried to convince people that the mosque was not being broken. While some were reassured and left, others remained enraged.
