Yearly Hindu Persecution Report of West Bengal: January-2025

Executive Summary

The Monthly Hindu Persecution Report of West Bengal: January 2025 is a structured documentation of six distinct incidents reported across multiple districts, including North Dinajpur, Darjeeling, East Medinipur, West Medinipur, Nadia and Kolkata. These incidents span a range of concerns from alleged land encroachment affecting public infrastructure, harassment of minors and serious criminal offenses to instances of religious desecration and obstruction of cultural practices.

A recurring pattern across these cases is the intersection of local disputes, criminal acts and tensions surrounding religious expression in public and institutional spaces. Notably, several incidents involve opposition to or disruption of Saraswati Puja celebrations, an important cultural and religious observance, raising broader questions about the protection of constitutional freedoms in localized contexts.

At the same time, the report documents instances of administrative and law enforcement intervention, including arrests in cases of harassment and sexual violence, as well as the provision of security to enable the conduct of religious events. These responses indicate varying degrees of state engagement depending on the nature and visibility of the incident.

Crucially, all incidents included in this report have undergone on-ground verification by members of Hindu Voice, ensuring that the documentation is not solely reliant on secondary or unverified digital sources. This lends a higher degree of credibility, granularity and contextual accuracy to the findings presented.

This report does not claim to be exhaustive but aims to provide a representative snapshot of reported incidents within January 2025, contributing to a broader understanding of localized socio-religious tensions and their manifestations in West Bengal.

Methodology

The findings presented in this report are based on a multi-layered verification framework designed to ensure accuracy, reliability, and contextual depth.

1. Ground-Level Verification
   Each incident documented in this report was independently verified on the ground by members of Hindi Voice. Field volunteers conducted site visits, interacted directly with affected individuals, local residents, and community stakeholders, and assessed the physical and social context of each case.
2. Primary Source Collection
   Where available, primary materials were reviewed, including:

• Police complaints and FIR references
• Eyewitness accounts and victim testimonies
• Local administrative communications
• Photographic or video evidence from the incident sites

3. Cross-Verification Process
   Information gathered from field visits were cross-checked against:

• Local media reports
• Statements from community members across different backgrounds
• Inputs from local authorities where accessible

Only those incidents that met minimum verification thresholds across multiple sources were included in the final report.

4. Criteria for Inclusion
   Incidents were selected based on the following criteria:

• Occurrence within the defined reporting period (January 2025)
• Clear identification of victims, location and nature of incident
• Availability of verifiable evidence or consistent multi-source testimony
• Relevance to themes of religious freedom, community safety, or targeted violence

5. Limitations
   While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, the report acknowledges certain limitations:

• Restricted access to official records in some cases
• Potential underreporting due to social or political sensitivities
• Reliance on available testimonies, which may evolve with ongoing investigations

Despite these constraints, the integration of direct field verification distinguishes this report from purely desk-based compilations and enhances its evidentiary value.

Chronological Documentation of Atrocities Against Hindus in January 2025

1. North Dinajpur(03.01.2025): Islamists goons tried to capture some parts of the 80 years old public road for Eidgah Ground. The road is renovated under the Pradhanmantri Gram Sadak Yojana. Hindu and Muslim villagers sent a written complaint to the MLA of Itahar. Because the road grab, local residents are facing problem. The road is situated in Ramdanga village under the jurisdiction of Itahar Police Station of North Dinajpur district.
2. Darjeeling(09.2025): Islamists Muhammad Shamim and Muhammad Siddique targeted a minor Hindu girl(16) while she was returning home from coaching class. Muhammad Shamim and Muhammad Siddique chased the Hindu girl on a dark road. The girl ran and somehow managed to save herself. The Islamists started to chase the minor Hindu girl I front of a mosque, as mentioned in the complaint. After receiving the complaint, the Police arrested the accused Islamists. The incident happened on the evening of 09.01.2025.

   

3. East Medinipur(13.2025): Islamist Faruk Gazi abducted and raped a minor Hindu girl(7 years old) in Bodhiya village under the jurisdiction of Ramnagar Police Station. The Police arrested accused Faruk Gazi after receiving the complaint.

   

4. West Medinipur(14.2025): On the morning of 14^th of January, local Hindus of Dirghagram village found the Murti of Kali Mata of the village temple was broken and thrown out of the temple. The Hindu villagers became angry and blocked a road. They demanded to identify and arrest the culprits. On the night of 14^th of January, local Hindus made a new Murti and did the Puja. Dirghagram village comes under the jurisdiction of the Ghatal Police Station.

   

5. North Dinajpur(20.01.2025): In Bekidanga village, under Itahar Assembly Constituency, on the night of 20/01/2025, unknown miscreants attacked the Kali Mata temple. The idol has been vandalised and desecrated. The hairs of the Murti has been torn and thrown outside.

   

6. Nadia(28.2025): Islamists beat up a Hindu school teacher in broad daylight as he wanted arrange Saraswati Puja in the school. In Haringhata Block’s ‘Daspol Primary School’, Islamists led by Alimuddin and others beat the Hindu school teacher. Islamists also threatened the teacher that the area is a Muslim majority area and Muslim students are majority, so Puja won’t happen.
7. Kolkata(30.2025): TMC leader Sabbir Ali threatened Hindu students not to arrange Saraswati Puja in Jogesh Chandra College. Some Hindu girl students alleged that Sabbir Ali threatened to rape them if they arrange Saraswati Puja in the college. As this news came to light, netizens criticized this. The Police and the administration intervened and the Saraswati Puja was done. Also, the Police arranged security during the puja.