London is one of the most religiously and ethnically diverse cities in the world, as well as home to a vibrant and longstanding Hindu and Indian community. However, recent years have seen a growing concern amongst British Hindus and Indians about the obvious rise in targeted hate and violence against them.
While many incidents go unreported or misclassified, a growing body of evidence suggests that anti-Hindu and anti-Indian hate crimes are becoming a serious issue in the capital.
What is a Hate Crime?
The Crown Prosecution Service defines a hate crime as any criminal offence that is perceived by the victim or anyone else to be motivated by hostility or prejudice toward a person’s protected characteristic. These characteristics include race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity. In this context, anti-Hindu hate should be understood as a form of religious hate crime, though it has historically received little attention from institutions and the media.
Related story: Systemic persecution of British Hindus
Recent Anti-Hindu and Anti-Indian Incidents in London
In recent years, there have been several notable incidents targeting Hindus and Indians in London, which have contributed to growing fear and concern within the community.
- In March 2023, Pakistan-sponsored anti-India extremists (pro-Khalistan extremists) attacked the High Commission of India in London. They smashed windows, tore down the Indian flag, and attempted to storm the building. The attack was widely viewed as a symbolic assault on both India and the Hindu community. Incidentally, the prime accused was similarly involved in such a disturbance at the HCI, London, in March 2022.
- In August 2023, British Hindus celebrating Indian Independence Day in London were harassed and physically assaulted by pro-Pakistan and Islamist groups. Many described the incident as religiously motivated, though it received little media attention. An anti-India Punjab Separatist was arrested for stabbing two celebrants at the function (link below)
- In November 2023, the London Assembly, led by Assembly Member Krupesh Hirani, raised concerns that hate crimes against Hindus were not being properly recorded by the Metropolitan Police. This underreporting has undermined efforts to address and prevent such crimes. Figures reveal that this has increased by 180% compared to Met Police data from the previous year
- In January 2025, masked Pakistan-sponsored anti-India extremists (pro-Khalistan extremists) stormed Vue Cinema in Harrow during a screening of the film Emergency, intimidating the audience and forcing the screening to stop. Most attendees were British Hindus.
- In March 2025, a City Hall summit convened by Krupesh Hirani brought together Hindu community leaders, police officers, and prosecutors to address the underreporting and misclassification of anti-Hindu hate crimes. Concerns were raised about the lack of institutional trust, the absence of formal recognition of Hinduphobia, and the need for coordinated action to ensure victims feel protected and respected.
- In April 2025, a Pakistani diplomat was caught on camera making a throat-slitting gesture at peaceful Indian and Hindu protestors outside the Pakistan High Commission in London. The protest was against the Pakistani-backed Islamist terror attack resulting in the religion-based killing of 26 tourists in Pahalgam, Kashmir.
- In May 2025, three Hindu-Indian teenage boys were violently attacked in Harrow Recreation Ground after being questioned about their ethnicity. Two were left unconscious with serious injuries.
Crime Statistics
There has been a steep rise in reported hate crime across the UK, with figures increasing from around 40,000 in 2012 to over 140,000 in 2022. Between 2022 and 2023 alone, there was a 25 per cent increase in religiously motivated hate crimes.
Within this rise, police recorded 193 hate crimes against Hindus in 2022 to 2023. However, many believe that these figures underrepresent the true scale of the issue due to misclassification and lack of awareness among law enforcement. From 2018 to 2021, the Metropolitan Police recorded 9,302 religiously motivated hate crimes, yet very few were identified as targeting Hindus.
A 2023 report by the Henry Jackson Society found that 51 per cent of Hindu parents reported their children had faced anti-Hindu hate in schools. The report also found that most schools had failed to monitor or address these incidents, leaving Hindu children vulnerable to ongoing discrimination.
As a law-abiding group, Hindus are also among the least represented groups in the UK prison population. In 2024, only 348 out of 87,869 prisoners identified as Hindu, just 0.3 per cent. Despite such a constructive attitude to society as well as a high proportion of professionals in technical, healthcare, information technology, and its entrepreneurial contributions to Britain, they continue to face disproportionate levels of religiously motivated hostility in some parts of the country.
Future Directions
The exponential growth in religious hate crimes shows the need for early intervention. For example, in July 2023, the Home Office recorded around 100 antisemitic incidents, but by November, that number had risen to nearly 600. Without serious measures in place, anti-Hindu and anti-Indian hate crimes may follow a similar trajectory.
There are growing calls from within the Hindu community and among allies for reforms in policing, data collection, school education, and media coverage. These include formally recognising Hinduphobia as a category of hate crime, improving police training, investing in community relations, and promoting religious literacy in public institutions.
