Hindu nationalism breeding ground for extremism, claims leaked UK home office report; Hindus slam 'worldwide fake narrative'

Hindu nationalism, misogyny, and the 'manosphere' have been identified to be breeding grounds of extremism, as per a leaked report commissioned by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper after the riots that broke out across the UK last summer.

The report was leaked to Policy Exchange, a right-leaning thinktank.

After the Leicester unrest in 2022, the rapid review commissioned by the home secretary, identifies Hindu nationalist extremism and Hindutva as ideologies of concern.

As per the report: "Hindu nationalist extremism is an extremist ideology that advocates for Hindu supremacy and seeks to transform India into an ethno-religious Hindu state.'

“Hindutva is a political movement distinct from Hinduism which advocates for the hegemony of Indian Hindus and the establishment of a monolithic Hindu Rastra or state in India," the report said, adding that tensions between Hindu and Muslim communities in the UK are 'still evident' and events in Leicester showed how disinformation could play a role in offline action.

British Hindus have strongly objected to this report, saying it is a part of a worldwide fake narrative to demonise Hindus.

Trupti Patel, president of the Hindu Forum of Britain, said the report was part of a worldwide narrative of 'anti-Hindu propaganda' akin to what Kash Patel and Tulsi Gabbard are facing in the US.

Patel said that Hindus in Britain are in no way 'extremist' and added that the HFB had sought to see a copy of the report while conveying a strong objection to the home office.

"We are a minority among minorities in Britain. We excel at what we do, we integrate and contribute. So as HFB, we have to make sure Hindus are not branded as extremists,” Patel said. “The Policy Exchange report is pushing a fake narrative that Hindutva caused the 2022 Leicester riots but there is no evidence that Hindus provoked the violence in Leicester. In fact, it was our temple, the Shivalaya, that was attacked," Times of India reported her say.

Dipen Rajyaguru, director of diversity and equality at the Hindu Council UK, told the publication “this report is at its best misinformed and biased and at its worst demonstrates a racist colonial mindset. Any attempt to equate Hinduism with extremism is not only misleading but also harmful. Hindus in the UK have faced increasing hate crimes, temple vandalism, and targeted attacks, especially after the Leicester riots."

The report has reportedly sparked outrage since it de-prioritised Islam and listed Hindu extremism as one of the nine new types of extremism. Security Minister Dan Jarvis reportedly told the House of Commons -- when he was summoned to explain the report -- that ministers had rejected it, saying it was among the 'many documents produced across govt that are not impemented.'