Inter-Religion Hate Speech in India: A Sociological Study on the Ambiguous Terminology of Secularism

Abstract

Hate speech, among other things, is one of the most pressing issues in India today. The fact that our society and our nation are so culturally diverse may often lead to discrimination and cultural bias in one form or another. Thus, I decided to look into the matter in order to discover the probable reasons behind this display of hate speech, the mediums through which it is often exhibited, and why people react differently to hate speech presented in different forms and degrees, e.g., why citizens would throw a riot for a political figure displaying some form of hate speech, as opposed to a young schoolboy. I have conducted a survey on inter-religion hate speech in India, with questions ranging from the religion the survey takers follow, to the level of hate speech they have either engaged in or been subjected to, to their faith in the Indian Judicial system to develop appropriate laws governing hate speech.My survey ranges all over India for reasons which are explained in my analysis, and the target audience of this survey rests in the educated youth of the country. For this reason, I have sent emails to various colleges in India, and received a total of approximately 100 responses. It was not particularly anabundant response, but it was a sufficient basis for me to infer the necessary conclusions upon. I have analysed the results of my survey and managed to compare and link them with various sociological aspects of life, supported by relevant data and hypothesesconcocted by various sociologists and philosophers such as, Jacques Derrida, AshisNandy, UpendraBaxi, etc.This paper further delves into the connection between hate speech and the law. It discusses the probable reasons as to why there is no dedicated and codified statute prohibiting hate speech in India, and it also discourses the difference between the definitions of secularism in the West and in the East, and how these definitions may impact and influence the hate speech laws of those respective countries.