Islamophobic Remarks :
Hindu nationalist and anti-Muslim Updesh Rana is situated in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. His incitement to hatred frequently makes national news. But his divisive campaign is not just on the internet. Rana visits many locations in India to encourage violence against Muslims. He organizes Hindu youth and incites them to commit acts of violence against Muslims through his organizations, the Vishva Sanatana Sangh (World Union of Hindus) and the Updesh Rana Youth Brigade.
He participated actively in the anti-Muslim riots that took place in New Delhi in 2020. One of the leaders of the pogrom who organized the violence against the Muslim minority and incited the Hindu mobs was Rana. Dozens of Muslims were killed as a result of the rioting. The rioters set fire to and looted in the Muslim neighborhood. His angry WhatsApp messages and videos circulated on social media, greatly inflaming Hindu rage and anti-Muslim prejudice.
He backed Shambhu Lal Regar, who in December 2017 in Rajasthan’s Rajsamand district hacked and burned a migrant worker by the name of Mohammed Afrazul. He captured the horrifying murder on video, which quickly gained popularity on social media. Rana traveled to Rajasthan to express his support for Shambhu Lal, the accused. However, the police stopped him from getting there and had him taken into custody.
Rallies in support of Shambhu Lal were organized by Rana, and attendees brandished lethal weapons and yelled hate speech. He posted a lot of videos in Shambhu Lal’s defense.
Rambhakt Gopal, the Jamia gunman who opened fire on anti-citizenship bill demonstrators in the area of Jamia Millia Islamia in early 2020, claimed that Updesh Rana served as his inspiration. In his writings, Rambhakt claimed that Shaheen Bagh would have been a “Jallianwala Bagh massacre” if he had even half of Rana’s supporters.
Rana praised the shooter, showing his respect by equating the shooter with Friedrich Nietzsche’s Übermensch, or superman. Every society need a superman, according to Nietzsche’s conception of the superhero. Gopal aspired to be this Hindu society’s Mahamanav. Although his approach may have been flawed, one must consider why he made this decision. He described him as emotional and upset with the system.
The Special Task Force had arrested Rana in Uttar Pradesh for outraging religious feelings by posting on WhatsApp a photoshopped picture of the Taj Mahal with saffron flags atop its pinnacle and minarets.
He actively participates in the “Love Jihad” and “cow vigilantism” conspiracies and collaborates with several Hindu nationalist groups like the Karni Sena and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
Rana is in favor of summarily punishing Muslims. He applauds the illegitimate demolition of Muslim dwellings. In one of his videos, he asked that Muslims be taught a lesson by “Bulldozer Justice” after a racial altercation in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh.
He was arrested with 19 others for protesting against the reality TV show “Bigg Boss” in front of Bollywood star Salman Khan’s house in Mumbai. He also walked into the Tipu Sultan mosque in Kolkata and slapped Imam Maulana Barkati.