News Report Claiming Attack on Hindi Speakers in Gujarat is Over 6 Years Old

A BBC report headline published in Marathi has gone viral on social media. When translated into English, it reads: ‘Ground Report: Are ‘outsider’ Hindi speakers being attacked in Gujarat?’ While sharing the headline, social media users are stoking tensions between Hindi and Gujarati speakers by claiming that violence against North Indians is rampant in Gujarat, yet the people continue to elect Narendra Modi.

Bol Maharashtra claimed, ‘These North Indians were abducted, killed and expelled from Gujarat. Then there is no space between them #हिंदू . They elect Narendra Modi, who is a Gujarati, from their own Uttar Pradesh. Then they will not ask any questions. This is just a महाराष्ट्र  मराठी man, and he opposes Raj Thackeray.’

गुजरात मधून या उत्तर भारतीयांना पळवून पळवून मारून हाकलून दिलं

तेव्हा यांच्यातला #हिंदू जागा होत नाही. यांच्याच उत्तरप्रदेशातून गुजराती असलेल्या नरेंद्र मोदींना हे निवडून देतात. तेव्हा हे काहीच प्रश्न विचारणार नाहीत

हे फक्त #महाराष्ट्र #मराठी माणूस ,अन् राज ठाकरेंना विरोध करतात pic.twitter.com/J2YPcNtxXg

— बोल महाराष्ट्र (@bolmaha) April 6, 2025

Shirish Sawant stated, ‘Will the so-called Uttar Bharatiya Vikas Sena also file a petition in the Supreme Court to cancel the recognition of the ruling party in Gujarat?’

गुजरात मधील सत्ताधारी पक्षाची मान्यता रध्द करण्याची सुध्दा याचिका सुप्रीम कोर्टात तथाकथित उत्तर भारतीय विकास सेनेकडुन दाखल होईल काय ? pic.twitter.com/YxKHWWWdxK

— शिरीष सावंत (@Shirishmns) April 8, 2025

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Fact Check

We began our fact-checking process by conducting a relevant Google search on the topic. During this search, we found the complete report being circulated by the claimants. The article was published by BBC on October 7, 2018. According to the report, “The rape incident in Gujarat has worsened the situation for non-Gujarati individuals in the state. A man from outside Gujarat was arrested for allegedly raping a minor girl in Sabarkantha district. Following this, resentment against people from Uttar Pradesh residing in Gujarat began to rise. Laborers from other states living in the Himmatnagar area of Sabarkantha are reportedly being threatened and told to leave Gujarat.”

The report further stated that, according to police, 18 incidents of attacks on migrant workers—people who had moved to Gujarat from other states and came to light following the incident. Police said that threats were being circulated through WhatsApp and other social media platforms, warning non-Gujaratis to leave the state. This, according to the police, was deteriorating the law-and-order situation. In response, Gujarat Police began arresting and detaining those spreading threats and inciting fear.

The report also detailed the crime that sparked the violence, ‘On September 28, a 14-month-old girl was raped in Dhundhar village near Himmatnagar, Sabarkantha district. A 19-year-old factory worker, Ravindra Gonde, was arrested for the crime. He allegedly took the sleeping child from a food stall near the factory to a field where he committed the assault and then fled. The victim was admitted to Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad in critical condition due to excessive bleeding. Dr. Rajendra Joshi, head of the Pediatrics Department, later stated that her condition had stabilized.’

BBC quoted Gujarat DGP Shivanand Jha saying, “Eighteen cases have been registered in connection with attacks on migrants. Security has been increased in the affected areas, with 20 teams of the state reserve police deployed. So far, 150 people have been arrested.”Additionally, we came across another BBC report published on October 10, 2018, which said, ‘According to police, 57 cases have been registered and 361 individuals arrested for inciting hatred against people from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.’

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