The killing of 26 tourists in Baisaran near Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir was one of the worst tragedies in India in recent times. Baisaran, a scenic meadow accessible only on horseback or by walking through rugged terrain, was turned into a site of horror. The massacre left the entire nation in deep grief. The attackers reportedly confirmed the religion of their victims before killing them. A local Muslim guide, escorting the tourists, resisted the attackers and was killed. Kashmiri porters helped carry survivors to safety and opened their homes and mosques to shelter the victims. In Kashmir, a bandh was observed and processions promoting Hindu-Muslim unity were held. Across the country, Muslims and other communities organized candlelight vigils and offered condolences for the deceased.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to visit Kashmir around that time, but cancelled his trip days before the incident. He was in Saudi Arabia when the attack occurred. He cut short his trip and returned to India, but instead of visiting Kashmir, he went to Bihar to address a political rally, where he issued a stern warning to terrorists. The underlying message in much of the subsequent media coverage was that the attackers were Muslims and the victims were Hindus—a narrative that further polarized the discourse.

While U.S. President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire, Modi interpreted it differently. Meanwhile, sections of the mainstream Indian audiovisual media—often referred derisively as "godi (lapdog) media"—went into overdrive, spreading hatred and sensationalism. TV anchors declared imagined victories over Pakistani cities from the comfort of their studios. The ethical decline of journalism, already underway, reached new lows.

Hate reached new low

The most disturbing outcome has been the escalation of hate against Muslims. Islamophobia is gripping the country with alarming intensity. In Latur, a Muslim man was labeled a Pakistani and a Kashmiri, beaten severely, and later committed suicide. In Uttarakhand, Kashmiri students were expelled from their hostel in the middle of the night and forced to take shelter near Dehradun Airport. The vilest display of this hostility came when Vijay Shah, a minister in the BJP-led Madhya Pradesh government, called Colonel Sophia Qureshi, a spokesperson for the Indian Army, a "sister of terrorists." He later issued an apology, likely for damage control.

Mithila Raut, affiliated with the Centre for the Study of Society and Secularism in Mumbai, documented multiple hate incidents in a recent article in Dainik Loksatta (Marathi). In one such case in Shamli district, Uttar Pradesh, a man named Sarfaraz was attacked by another named Govind, who reportedly said, “You killed our 26; we’ll kill your 26.” In Dera Bassi, Punjab, Kashmiri students at the Universal Group of Institutes were assaulted in their hostel.

In another incident, Shabbir Dhar, a Kashmiri who ran a shawl shop in Mussoorie, was attacked along with his assistant and falsely accused of being responsible for the Pahalgam killings. They were warned never to return. In Rohtak, Haryana, Muslim residents were threatened and told to vacate the village by May 2.

These are only a few cases reported in the press, but they reveal how deeply hate has permeated our society. The social atmosphere has been deteriorating steadily. The Hindu Right has long cultivated animosity against Muslims. This began with a distorted narrative of medieval history promoted in RSS shakhas (training camps), amplified by the Godi media and social platforms, portraying Muslims as the "other."

Growing communal divide

The formation of Pakistan provided another justification for communal politics. A distorted historical narrative claims that Muslims were solely responsible for Partition. In reality, Pakistan’s creation stemmed from a combination of British "divide and rule" policies, and both Muslim and Hindu communalism. The Two-Nation Theory was first articulated by Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar—not by Muslim leaders alone.

The post-Partition narrative continued to vilify Muslims. The complex Kashmir issue was used to intensify this hatred. The exodus of Kashmiri Pandits in 1990 became a central point of anti-Muslim propaganda. This occurred when the V.P. Singh government, supported by the BJP, was in power, and Jagmohan—a pro-BJP appointee—was Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. Yet, the role of Muslims was exaggerated, ignoring the political context and responsibility of those in power.

Over time, more issues have been weaponized to target Indian Muslims. Voices of harmony have been silenced, and every tragedy is exploited to further the agenda of hate. The RSS-BJP combine uses these moments to push forward their vision of a Hindu Rashtra.

The Pahalgam incident also signals a shift in Indian diplomacy. As per the 1972 Shimla Agreement between Indira Gandhi and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, India and Pakistan were to resolve their issues bilaterally, without third-party mediation. But with Donald Trump asserting influence and Modi appearing unwilling to counter him, this principle seems to be weakening. Not many global powers openly supported India in the aftermath of this tragedy.

The path forward lies in returning to the principles espoused by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee—Insaniyat (humanism), Kashmiriyat (the unique cultural identity of Kashmir), and Jamhooriyat (democracy). As Vajpayee aptly said, “Friends can change, but not neighbours.” The vilification of Pakistan by the Hindu Right, amplified by a hate-spewing media, has real consequences for Indian Muslims. It poisons the domestic atmosphere and jeopardizes social cohesion.

The growing communal divide following the Pahalgam tragedy must be understood in all its dimensions. We must reject war-mongering and hatred to secure peace and prosperity for our nation. Until now, the term “Pakistani” was the primary slur used against Muslims. Now, “Kashmiri” has been added to the vocabulary of hate.

(The author is a former professor at IIT Bombay and Chairman of the Centre for the Study of Society and Secularism, Mumbai. Views expressed are personal. He can be reached at ram.puniyani@gmail.com. He is also active on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter, Pinterest, and his personal web)