Disorder that broke out in Leicester over the weekend between the Hindu and Muslim communities escalated as a result of misinformation on social media and a distortion of the facts, the city’s mayor has said.
Fifteen people were arrested on Monday, after weeks of rioting between Hindus and Muslims since an Asia Cup cricket match between India and Pakistan on August 28.
“I’ve seen a huge selection of things on social media that are very, very, very distorting now and some outright lies about what had been going on between different communities,” Peter Soulsby told the BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme.
“There is no obvious local cause for this,” Soulsby said, pointing to a distortion of the facts on social media and a concerted effort to bring people from as far away as Birmingham to heighten tensions in “a very peaceful city”.
Celebrations that took place after the cricket match in August later turned disorderly, a police spokesman said. “An incident was shared on social media stating that a Muslim was being attacked by Hindus. This was wrong – the victim was actually a Sikh and supported the same team as the people who attacked him,” he said. say the spokesman.
For several weeks, police have been trying to counter misinformation as they come across it, the spokesman said, adding: “Certainly, we believe it has been attributed to tensions in the community.”
The latest unrest, described by locals as “unprecedented” in the east Midlands’ most densely populated city, erupted after unplanned protests on Saturday night and early Sunday morning.
The disinformation appeared when members of the different communities alleged acts against places of worship and people of faith, the mayor said.
On Saturday, Leicestershire Police reported activity on social media, citing attacks on a local mosque. “Officers on the ground have confirmed this is not true,” the force tweeted.
When police quickly tried to correct the record, the mayor told the BBC: “Social media is a world that is perhaps a bit wild.”
Over the weekend, a chant that has become synonymous with anti-Muslim violence in India was heard in the streets – “Jai Shri Ram”, which translates from Hindi as “Hail Lord Ram” or “victory to Lord Ram”. In videos released, a group of Hindu men were filmed walking along Green Lane Road, dotted with several Muslim-owned businesses and a nearby Hindu temple.
Local Hindu and Muslim residents told the Guardian they felt attacked, mocked and attacked.
Polarization within Hindu-Muslim communities has worsened under India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has been criticized for his treatment of minorities, mainly Muslims, and for undermining the country’s secular foundations.
Deceptive social media tactics used by the government have been described by experts as commonplace in India, where platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp have come under scrutiny for allowing the proliferation of misinformation, harassment and violence
“In Leicester, ‘normal’ is very good relations between people of faith,” said the mayor. “I think we are all very confident that Leicester is resilient enough to be able to return to normal relations very soon.”
Gurharpal Singh, emeritus professor of Sikh and Punjab studies at Soas University London and visiting scholar at the University of Leicester, said Leicester was a model of multiculturalism, but there was an underlying divide.
“These tensions that have increased now are part of the larger social change that’s happening in the city,” said Singh, who has lived in the city periodically since 1964. He pointed to changes in the city’s ethnic minority demographics and increasing deprivation. exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
“Furthermore, perhaps the growing influence of homeland politics, you know, the mobilization of the diaspora by the BJP, should not be dismissed. [Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party].”
While the facts on the ground are still unclear, Singh said the Indian media had reported on Leicester in very communal terms, building up events like communal riots in India. “The underlying socio-economic tensions are there, and then they are exacerbated by fringe groups using community discourse,” he said.
On Monday, India’s high commission condemned the violence in Leicester and the “vandalism of premises and symbols of the Hindu religion”. He said the matter had been taken up by UK authorities and he was seeking immediate action against those involved in the attacks.