Right wing Hindu nationalism, Indian cricket and hate filled tweets

[Scarlet Rose]

Right wing Hindu nationalism has been the dominant political force in Indian state politics for decades now and has routinely seen punitive actions being taken against members of ethnic and religious minorities. Even the sport of cricket, which is a widely followed and loved sport over in India is not immune to this scourge. Following a recent, close, series loss to Pakistan a member of the Indian cricket team found himself on the receiving end of racist tweets insinuating that it was his disloyalty to Hindu nationalism that cost India the game. This isn't the first time this has happened to one of their national players either. It is sadly quite reflective of the wide sweeping right wing Hindu nationalism.

How targeting a non-Hindu cricketer is becoming a trend in India

Arshdeep Singh became the latest cricketer to have hate-filled tweets directed at him after India’s loss to Pakistan.

www.aljazeera.com

“That this manifests as targeting of those most easy to attack – any kind of minority – reflects the success of the propaganda project of India’s current ruling ideology. It puts into sharp contrast why we watch and love sport, with the more stark reality of the world in which that sport happens.”

Sunday’s incident was not the first time a non-Hindu player was targeted. Singh, 23, merely was the latest cricketer to become the target of hate campaigns and vicious criticism following a loss to Pakistan.

 

[Webster]

From AlJazeera....

Over the last eight years since Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been in power, Hindu majoritarianism has swept across India and non-Hindu minorities have been at the receiving end.

In June this year, the US Department of State noted in its annual report that “attacks on members of religious minority communities, including killings, assaults, and intimidation, occurred throughout the year [2021]. These included incidents of ‘cow vigilantism’ against non-Hindus based on allegations of cow slaughter or trade in beef.”

The lynching of Muslims has become common, and a slew of laws and state actions have been implemented, putting their lives and way of life in mortal jeopardy. Other minorities such as Christians have also been attacked with their schools and churches targeted over right-wing Hindu claims of forced conversions.