Across India (communal violence & policy flashpoints)

Feb 18, 1983 — Nellie massacre, Assam
During the Assam agitation against alleged illegal migrants, mobs attacked Bengali-origin Muslim villages in the Nagaon district. The violence — concentrated in Nellie and surrounding villages — resulted in one of the deadliest single-episode massacres in independent India. Official counts vary and access to independent investigation has been historically constrained; the killings left deep trauma, displacement, and bitter memories of exclusion and ethnic targeting.

May 22, 1987 — Hashimpura (Meerut) massacre, Uttar Pradesh
Amid communal rioting in Meerut, members of a provincial armed constabulary rounded up Muslim men from a locality, took them to a canal, and machine-gunned dozens; many bodies were later recovered. The case languished in legal limbo for years; trials, appeals and eventual convictions occurred only decades later. The incident became emblematic of allegations of state-collusion or partisan excess by security contingents during communal unrest.

Dec 6, 1992 — Babri Masjid demolition (Ayodhya) and countrywide fallout
A large campaign to build a Ram temple on disputed land culminated in the demolition of the Babri Masjid by kar sevaks and associated mobs. The demolition triggered widespread communal riots across India, including major outbreaks of violence in Mumbai and elsewhere, causing hundreds of deaths and massive property destruction. The episode reshaped national politics, stimulated long-running legal battles over the land, and hardened communal polarisation for decades.

Dec 1992–Jan 1993 — Bombay (Mumbai) riots
In the immediate aftermath of Ayodhya’s demolition, Mumbai witnessed days of pitched communal violence, arson and targeted killings in mixed neighbourhoods. Entire communities were displaced, shops and homes burned, and long-term segregation of neighbourhoods intensified. The violence led to extensive investigations and a litany of criminal cases, many of which took years to resolve.

Feb–Mar 2002 — Gujarat communal violence (Godhra aftermath)
After the burning of a train coach in Godhra that killed train passengers, widespread retaliatory violence engulfed Gujarat. Large-scale attacks on Muslim neighbourhoods, destruction of homes and places of worship, and allegations of organised mob action sparked national and international outrage. Official casualty estimates and independent tallies vary; critics charged state-level complicity or negligence while subsequent judicial processes and commissions produced a complex and contested legal record.

Sep 2013 — Muzaffarnagar–Shamli riots, Uttar Pradesh
Communal clashes between Hindus and Muslims in Muzaffarnagar and adjoining districts resulted in dozens killed and tens of thousands displaced. Triggered by local incidents and inflamed by political mobilisation, the violence led to large-scale migration of victims and lasting communal segregation in affected districts. Subsequent trials and inquiries saw mixed results, with many survivors still seeking restitution.

Oct 2015 — Dadri lynching (Gautam Buddh Nagar, UP)
A mob assaulted and killed Mohammad Akhlaq over allegations that he and his family had stored or consumed beef; the killing was videotaped and quickly spread on social media. The incident crystallized national attention on a wave of vigilante attacks linked to cow protection rhetoric, and prompted debate on hate speech, impunity and the precariousness of everyday Muslim livelihoods in rural and peri-urban settings.

2015–2020s — Cow-related vigilantism and mob lynchings across states
A series of lynchings, beatings and mob interrogations of Muslim and Dalit people accused of cow slaughter or transporting beef occurred across multiple states. These attacks often relied on rumours and online amplification, sometimes involving armed mobs. Human-rights groups documented patterns of impunity, delayed police response, and communal intimidation that affected markets, farmers and ordinary travel along highways.

Feb 23–29, 2020 — Northeast Delhi riots
Violence concentrated in northeast Delhi’s mixed neighborhoods produced scores of deaths, hundreds of injuries, and the burning of shops, homes and religious sites. Much of the destruction affected Muslim-majority pockets while neighbouring areas also saw losses; the clashes were connected to protests around the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and local political tensions. Investigations, arrests and trials followed but controversy over investigation fairness and victim protection continued.

Dec 2019 → Mar 11, 2024 — Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and protests
The CAA (2019) created a fast-track path to citizenship for non-Muslim migrants from certain neighbouring countries, prompting large nationwide protests and the argument that it discriminated on religious grounds. Protesters feared a CAA combined with a nationwide NRC could render many Muslims stateless; while supporters framed it as humanitarian for persecuted minorities. The law sparked sustained civil unrest, legal challenges, and shaped political discourse around citizenship and secularism.

2018–2019 — Assam NRC and documentation drives
Assam’s final NRC list and related documentation drives were intended to identify legal citizens, but thousands who failed to appear on initial lists faced the risk of detention or exclusion. The exercise illustrated how administrative verification of identity disproportionately affected marginalised populations and became a politically charged test case for what a national NRC might mean elsewhere.

2020–2023 — State “anti-conversion” laws, “love jihad” narratives, and restrictions on interfaith marriages
Several state governments passed laws that restrict conversion for marriage or require bureaucratic approval — framed as preventing forced conversions but criticised for being vaguely worded and selectively enforced. These measures disproportionately affected Muslim men and interfaith couples, triggered arrests, and complicated private family choices with legal scrutiny and social stigma.

Laws of policing and prosecution — AFSPA, UAPA and expanded detention tools
Across states and in J&K, tougher security and anti-terror statutes (like UAPA) and long-standing special acts (AFSPA in disturbed areas) have enabled preventive detention and prolonged incarceration on broad grounds. Rights organizations argue that these laws, when applied without strong oversight, can be used to silence dissent, curtail protest, or subject activists and minority community members to prolonged legal uncertainty.

Internet shutdowns & communications curbs (notably J&K, various local shutdowns elsewhere)
Targeted internet and mobile shutdowns, used by authorities to control unrest or protests, have disrupted schooling, businesses, legal work and emergency services. The 2019–2021 Kashmir shutdown was among the longest such curbs, and analysts note these measures widen the information gap, impede legal redress and have a disproportionate economic cost for the affected populations.