US think tank launches database tracking anti-minority hate in India
Research initiative documents slogans, conspiracy theories and coded language used by Hindu far-right networks in India and diaspora communities
NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — A U.S.-based research organization has launched a searchable database documenting the coded language, conspiracy theories and slogans used by Hindu far-right groups to spread hostility against religious minorities in India and among Indian diaspora communities around the world.
The project, called Decoding Hate, was developed by the Washington-based Center for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH) and catalogues hundreds of expressions that researchers say are routinely used to stigmatize Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and government critics while often escaping detection by social media moderation systems.
CSOH said the online database is intended to help journalists, researchers, policymakers, educators, technology companies and civil society organizations identify harmful narratives that increasingly circulate across digital platforms and political discourse.
According to the organization, many of the documented terms appear innocuous in isolation but function as coded signals within far-right ecosystems, helping spread conspiracy theories, normalize discrimination and dehumanize targeted communities without explicitly violating platform rules.
The project traces how these narratives have evolved over the past decade in India before spreading through Indian diaspora networks in countries including the United States, Britain, Canada and Australia.
Researchers say online communities have played a key role in exporting these narratives across borders while also reintroducing rhetoric developed overseas back into Indian political discourse.
The database includes religious slurs, conspiracy theories, political slogans and coded expressions associated with campaigns targeting Muslims, Christians and Sikhs. CSOH said the collection will continue expanding as new terminology emerges in online conversations and political mobilization.
Researchers argue that documenting coded hate speech has become increasingly important because automated moderation systems often struggle to identify harmful language that relies on context, symbolism or evolving slang rather than explicit threats or abusive words.
The organization said the resource could help social media companies improve content moderation across platforms including Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, WhatsApp, Telegram, Reddit and TikTok, where such narratives frequently circulate.
It also said governments, researchers and civil society organizations could use the database to better monitor organized campaigns promoting hostility toward minority communities.
CSOH described the initiative as a “living framework” that will be updated as new slogans, coded expressions and conspiracy theories emerge, reflecting the rapidly changing nature of online hate speech and political messaging.
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