Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Mob rule: On migrants, rising hate crimes in India

Mob rule: On migrants, rising hate crimes in India

The bogey of infiltration (घुसपैठ) is resulting in hate crimes across India

In the closing weeks of 2025, a series of violent incidents across India exposed a disturbing pattern of mob violence directed at migrants who were labelled foreigners — Bangladeshis and Chinese — by their attackers. In these cases, the three victims were Indian citizens from various parts of the country. Suspicion based on language, region, appearance or presumed (अनुमान लगाना) nationality is escalating into mob violence in different regions. This is extremely worrying and the police must act strictly. The political leadership in States and the Centre must make it clear that such violence is unacceptable. In Palakkad district, Kerala, Ram Narayan Baghel, a 31-year-old migrant worker from Chhattisgarh was lynched (भीड़-हिंसा में मार डालना) by a mob on December 17. Baghel was accused of theft and repeatedly questioned about his identity, with his attackers allegedly asking him whether he was “Bangladeshi” before beating him to death. Kerala is heavily dependent on migrant (प्रवासी) labour, and prides itself on its high levels of education and law and order. The lynching is a blot on its reputation. On December 24, in Sambalpur in Odisha, a young migrant worker from West Bengal was beaten to death by a mob that accused him of being a “Bangladeshi”. Juel Sheikh, a daily wage labourer, was confronted (सामना करना) at a tea stall by unidentified persons who demanded his identity documents and accused him of being an illegal Bangladeshi immigrant. Two days later, in another incident from Odisha, a Bengali-speaking street vendor from West Bengal was assaulted.

In Tamil Nadu, a man from Odisha was attacked while travelling on a train, in Tiruvallur district, by juveniles armed with machetes and sickles. The assault was filmed and circulated on social media. In Dehradun, on December 28, Anjel Chakma, a 22-year-old student from Tripura, was stabbed by a group that had allegedly hurled (ज़ोर से फेंका, उछाला) racial slurs at him and his brother. He died in hospital later. People from the northeastern States are often treated as perpetual (निरंतर, लगातार) outsiders in other parts of India; Chakma was called “Chinese” by his attackers. These are not isolated incidents: they occur amid numerous other cases of mob intimidation, sometimes targeting worshippers of minority communities, at other times, even young students celebrating a friend’s birthday. The police in the States have responded to these horrible crimes by making some arrests, but that is not sufficient. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has turned its incendiary (भड़काऊ, उकसाने वाला) campaign against “illegal infiltration” from Bangladesh as a central plank (A long, thin, flat piece of timber; a fundamental item of a political or social program) in the forthcoming Assembly elections in Assam and West Bengal. It is no coincidence that mobs across the country feel emboldened (प्रोत्साहित करना) to raise this bogey (Something that causes fear or worry; (in golf) one stroke over par) at random against helpless people. The BJP should realise the dangers of its campaign and restrain (रोकना, नियंत्रण में रखना) itself.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.Infiltration (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – घुसपैठ
English Meaning – The action of entering or gaining access to an organization or place surreptitiously, especially in order to acquire secret information or cause damage.

2.Presume (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – अनुमान लगाना
English Meaning – To suppose that something is the case on the basis of probability; to take for granted.

3.Lynch (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – भीड़-हिंसा में मार डालना
English Meaning – (Of a group of people) kill someone for an alleged offense without a legal trial.

4.Migrant (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – प्रवासी
English Meaning – A person who moves from one place to another, especially in order to find work or better living conditions.

5.Confront (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – सामना करना
English Meaning – To face up to and deal with a problem or difficult situation; to meet someone face to face in hostility.

6.Hurled (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – ज़ोर से फेंका, उछाला
English Meaning – Threw an object with great force; uttered insults or accusations vehemently.

7.Perpetual (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – निरंतर, लगातार
English Meaning – Never ending or changing; occurring repeatedly.

8.Embolden (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – प्रोत्साहित करना
English Meaning – To give someone the courage or confidence to do something or to behave in a certain way.

9.Incendiary (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – भड़काऊ, उकसाने वाला
English Meaning – (Of a device) designed to cause fires; tending to stir up conflict or excitement.

10.Restrain (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – रोकना, नियंत्रण में रखना
English Meaning – To prevent someone or something from doing something; to keep under control.

11.Bogey (Noun)

English Meaning – Something that causes fear or worry; (in golf) one stroke over par.

12.Plank (Noun)

English Meaning – A long, thin, flat piece of timber; a fundamental item of a political or social program.