Indian Muslims Face Persistent Loyalty Tests Amid Rising Tensions
Escalating Anti-Muslim Incidents in India
Over the past two weeks, a series of anti-Muslim hate incidents have been reported across India, following the deadly attack on tourists in Kashmir last month. According to the Association for Protection of Civil Rights, 184 such incidents were recorded in a two-week period after the Pahalgam attack on 22 April, which resulted in the deaths of 26 people.
Half of the cases involved hate speech, while others were described as intimidation, harassment, assaults, vandalism, threats, and verbal abuse. Three cases resulted in killings. The Pahalgam attack was cited as a triggering factor in more than 100 of these incidents.
Shifting Political Landscape and Social Tensions
What is evident is a more dangerous shift than just reactive violence. It is the political mainstreaming of suspicion, and a recalibration of what it means to be Muslim in India.
Following the Pahalgam killings, the Indian government launched Operation Sindoor, a military campaign targeting sites in Pakistan, which it accused of facilitating the attack. Despite Pakistan’s denial, the operation marked a significant escalation in regional tensions.
The aftermath of this operation also had domestic repercussions, particularly in terms of the perception and treatment of Indian Muslims in public and political discourse.
Historical Context of Muslim Discrimination in India
Historically, whenever India and Pakistan engage in military or diplomatic conflict, India’s Muslim population is made to pay the price: socially, politically and psychologically. What is happening now is no exception.
As writer Hussain Haidry noted, for decades, Indian Muslims have been referred to as Pakistanis by many in India. Their ghettos are called ‘Mini Pakistan.’ They are mocked as supporters of the Pakistani cricket team whenever there is a cricket match between the two. They are abused with the remark, ‘Go back to Pakistan.’
So it should not be a shock to anyone in India if its Muslims are harmed in all possible ways by the majority if there are tensions between India and Pakistan, because the cultural framework for this aggravated discrimination and violence is already in place.
Recent Incidents and Social Reactions
Recently in Ambala, a mob chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ torched Muslim-owned shops. This was not a spontaneous eruption of communal anger; right-wing groups stepped into the spotlight with open, organised aggression.
The tragedy extends beyond the physical violence itself. It is in the way suspicion has become mainstream; in how the concept of Indian Muslim citizenship is being rewritten as conditional, fragile and perpetually suspect.
Underlying Causes of the Tensions
This is no sudden flareup. Rather, it is the product of years of ideological preparation through school textbooks, television debates, political speeches, WhatsApp messages and online propaganda. The Pahalgam attack was merely a catalyst for releasing long-built-up pressure.
Every India-Pakistan escalation now triggers an informal loyalty test for Indian Muslims. But this test is evolving, becoming more explicit and public.
Tools of Exclusion in Nationalism
The optics of nationalism have morphed into tools of exclusion, as analyst Sara Ather noted: ‘A standard is being set for what counts as an ‘acceptable’ Muslim. And the message is clear: if you want to be accepted as part of the Indian community, you must meet this minimum threshold, otherwise, you are seen as a Pakistani sympathiser, a terrorist, or worse.’
This is coercive assimilation, not integration. And the stakes are high: refusal or hesitation means surveillance, social ostracism, harassment and violence.
Political Silence and Normalization of Hate
What is most troubling is the near-silence from mainstream political voices. Opposition parties have largely avoided confronting this rising tide of hate, knowing that to do so could make them targets of public suspicion or state scrutiny. This environment allows hate to become normalised, laws to be marginalised, and mobs to act with impunity – all under the guise of patriotism.
Real Consequences for Indian Muslims
For Indian Muslims the end times have arrived. Earlier this month, a Muslim man reportedly died by suicide after being assaulted and accused of being ‘Pakistani’ by a local journalist, who later fled the scene. His death is emblematic of a climate where suspicion alone can become a death sentence.
While the guns along the India-Pakistan border might have fallen silent for now, the war over Indian Muslim identity is escalating, fought with insinuations, silence and shrinking rights. It is fought every time a Muslim must shout ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’ to be accepted, or condemn Pakistan publicly before mourning the deaths of fellow Indian citizens.
The question is no longer whether Indian Muslims are loyal enough. The question is whether India is willing to accept its Muslim citizens as they are, without demanding performances of patriotism and endless loyalty tests, and without suspicion as a default setting.
A democracy that demands loyalty tests based on religion is not truly a democracy. It is an exclusionary, majoritarian regime in denial. And until this changes, Indian Muslims will continue to pay the price for wars they did not start – with their lives, security and dignity.