Increasing Intolerance And Mob Lynching Is A New Trend In India

Neha Duggal

A youth probably in his twenties is lynched by the mob in the holy premises of Golden Temple. This again sparks the debate around rising mob lynching cases in India. Though it is not a new issue but has risen exponentially after the Modi government came into power in 2014 mainly in 2017 and 2018.

While majority of these cases were cow vigilante violence but the recent case of such an act in Golden Temple has stirred a discussion around increasing intolerance among Indians which lead to these cruel incidents.

Majority of such cases are related to religious sentiments. According to Reuters there were 63 cases of cow vigilante violence between 2010 and 2017 targeting the people of a particular community.

Dying Man And Hailing Mob

The video of the recent lynching in the Golden Temple is showing the hailing crowd while the man was dying. According to news reports, the person whose identity could not be confirmed was waiting for ‘darshan’ along with the sangat but suddenly he climbed the safety railing and tried to pick the golden sword kept in front of the 'Saroop' of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, a sacred book of Sikhism.

Why People Are Becoming Intolerant

According to Mohak Mangal of Soch, people are connecting only with the people of similar opinion and therefore creating a more intolerant ecosystem as it further boosts their belief that they are right in doing that. Social media has only escalated this phenomenon with its algorithm. Threat to identity and religion is another main reason for rising intolerance among people, with inflammatory speeches from the politicians people have started believing that their religion is in threat and to protect it they need to stand up which again ended up increasing intolerance and lynchings.