Unpacking hate against Kerala: An open source intelligence driven probe

Anti-Kerala sentiment online isn’t organic. It’s engineered. Using OSINT, we trace the accounts, tactics, and triggers driving the trend. A deep dive into the machinery of digital misinformation.

Soon after a deadly blast targeted a gathering of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Kochi on October 29, 2023, Rajeev Chandrasekhar — the current BJP Kerala state president and then Union Minister of State — took to his official X (formerly Twitter) account to post a controversial message attacking Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. He claimed the explosion was a consequence of Kerala’s alleged support for Hamas and “Jihad.”

However, Dominic Martin, a registered member of the religious group and the man behind the blast, later released a video confession admitting he carried out the attack because he was angered by what he called its “anti-national” teachings. This became yet another instance in which a right wing political leader targeting Kerala with baseless and false allegations.

In September 2025, independent media outlets ,The News Minute and the Newslaundry published an investigative piece on how right-wing groups in Kerala are weaponizing the social media platform X to incite hatred against Muslims in the state. The report showed users with extreme right-wing ideologies openly urging Hindus in Kerala to take up arms in the name of defending themselves from Muslims.

Kerala has long been a target of sustained hate campaigns, with countless instances of malicious posts going viral over the years. These attacks rarely hinge on any specific incident; instead, they form a continuous pattern aimed at undermining the state’s secular fabric, the social development and its tradition of religious harmony. While this trend has been persistent, this report focuses specifically on assessing the scale and intensity of such hate-filled social media activity in the last six months, from June 2025 to November 2025. This report has been prepared by OSINT research.

Hashtags and Keywords:

We conducted an analysis of social media posts ranging from June 2025 to November 2025 and discovered that users utilized specific hashtags to disseminate hate and misinformation about Kerala.​

Furthermore, we discovered specific keywords used in these social media posts to ridicule Kerala. The keywords consist of communal terms that are frequently employed to attack minorities.

​While there are some exceptions, we observed that posts featuring these hashtags and keywords typically come from X and are subsequently shared on other social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram.

Actors:

We identified sixteen accounts that frequently post unrelated or outdated images paired with misleading, often hate-filled captions. Several of these accounts also operate in a coordinated manner, disseminating the same visuals with similar communal messages. The content they circulate gains considerable traction, with many unsuspecting users reposting it under the belief that it represents the actual situation. A common thread among these accounts is their strong alignment with extreme right-wing ideology.

From these sixteen accounts, we identified four that wield significant influence.

@AnoopKaippalli

Anoop Antony Joseph, the general secretary of the BJP in Kerala, is one among the key players spreading hate on X. He was also identified on December 12, 2023, for spreading misleading communal assertions on X. He posted a short video taken from an Asianet News report regarding Sabarimala, accompanied by false claims about violence against pilgrims.

At present, the post has 1,37,600 views, 6,200 likes, and 2,800 reposts. In a similar vein, on December 27, 2023, he shared a scripted video purporting to depict extortion rings, falsely presenting it as a real event that took place in Kerala. The post garnered more than 80,000 views.

@KreatelyMedia

@KreatelyMedia is a pro-right account that joined X on June 8, 2020, and currently has 3,30,284 followers. It averages 34,193 views per post and 2,422 engagements. An examination of the profile shows that the account consistently posts material aligned with the extreme right wing. On May 30, 2025, Kreately targeted Maheen Shajahan, a Kerala-based influencer popularly known as the Hitchhiking Nomad. On his verified account, Shajahan had posted a video featuring himself and his travel companions at a Hindu temple in Thodupuzha. Soon after, right-wing accounts began attacking Shajahan and Kreately amplified these posts, alleging that he had mocked Hindu rituals.

Kreately was also one of the key amplifiers of the trend #BoycottMalabarGold. On October 17, the account shared a list of jewellers with non-Muslim owners and urged users on X to boycott Malabar Gold. The post received more than 1,76,000 views.

Additionally, on November 9, Kreately shared an old unrelated video from Bangladesh claiming to show illegal immigrants leaving West Bengal after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

@ssaratht

@ssaratht, using the profile name Tathvam-asi, joined X on August 20, 2009, and currently has 82,671 followers. The account garners an average of 29,437 views and 1,271 engagements per post. On April 26, Tathvam-asi shared a video of an Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) rally opposing the Waqf Amendment Act, 2025, and falsely claimed that the footage showed Kerala Muslims rallying in support of Pakistan after the Pahalgam attack.

Similar to Kreately, Tathvam-asi shared the same unrelated video from Bangladesh on November 11, repeating the false claim that illegal immigrants were hastily leaving West Bengal after the SIR. On October 16, the account was also found amplifying a fabricated claim that Malabar Gold and Diamonds provided scholarships exclusively to Muslim students.

@the_kerala_girl

@the_kerala_girl joined X on March 13, 2024, after the original account, @da_kerala_girl, was suspended. The account now has 6,564 followers and averages 17,099 views and 376 engagements per post. Its posts are typically rooted in extreme right-wing ideology and often carry communal undertones. Following the Delhi blast, @the_kerala_girl shared a communal post on November 11, suggesting that madrasas are the source of radicalisation in India and should be shut down.

On November 9, the account targeted an X user from Kerala for supporting Palestine. The post, which featured a screenshot of the X account, ridiculed the user for including the Palestine flag in their name, pointing out that there is no Indian flag present in their profile and sneering that Kerala represents the Kashmir of the South.

​​@MahaRathii

@MahaRathii joined X on March 6, 2019. With 12,500 followers, the account typically receives around 700 views per post and an average of fifty-three engagements. The posts mostly focus on Kerala’s socio-political landscape, with a clear right-wing tilt. The account has also been found amplifying false claims. On November 24, 2025, @MahaRathii shared footage of a United Democratic Front (UDF) rally in Thrikaripur, Kasaragod, featuring Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) candidates. The caption read: “This is not Kabul… not Karachi… not Dhaka… This is Kerala, Kasaragod, Thrikarippur!! For the local body elections, UDF’s (Congress) entire nomination team walks fully covered in burqa. Not a single other face. Not a trace of diversity. Just one community, one dress, one takeover. Hindus are still silent… still sleeping… still pretending everything is normal. But the ground reality is changing, and it won’t wait for us to wake up. This is the real demographic shift happening on the ground — silently, rapidly, and dangerously ignored by ‘secular’ Kerala.”

Spreading fear about a shrinking Hindu population in Kerala:

On September 8, 2025, X user @MahaRathii shared an image of purported statistics claiming to show religion-wise birth rates and numbers for Hindu and Muslim communities in Kerala from 2016 to 2023. The post received over 1,736 views.​
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The communal captions of the posts allege that the Hindu population in Kerala is shrinking at an alarming rate, resulting in a big demographic shift. It also propagates the fear that Hindus will soon become a minority in Kerala if they don’t “wake up”. Upon further analysis, we found that the account is a serial propagator of extreme right-wing content, frequently targeting Kerala.
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The Economic and Statistics Department of Kerala State used to publish the Annual Vital Statistical Report every year. The last report came out in 2023. We noticed that these statistics were taken from this report. However, a comparison of the birth rate in 2022 and 2023  shows a drop both in Muslims from 2,00,325 to 1,76,312 and Hindus from 1,77,037 to 1,58,399.

The post portray the higher birth rate among Muslims as part of an organised attempt against Hindus.

Hate against interfaith couples:

We noticed that X users such as @MahaRathii, @ssaratht, and @the_kerala_girl are often found targeting interfaith couples in Kerala under the banner of “Lover Jihad.” These accounts share videos of interfaith couples accompanied by communal captions. Many of these clips are originally posted on Instagram by the couples themselves, celebrating their years of companionship and love while also reflecting Kerala’s secular perspective.
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Sources:link1, link2, link3, link4.
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The X post shared by @ssaratht on September 13, 2025, garnered 3,89,500 views, 8,500 likes, and 3,200 reposts. These four posts on a average received 1,28,955 views, 2,892 likes, and 1,092 reposts.
All these posts suggest that Muslim men in Kerala are indulging in “Love Jihad” and targeting Hindu girls and urge Hindus to wake before it’s too late.

Disinformation targeting Kerala:

We found many posts disseminating false information about Kerala from the account mentioned above.The majority of them are targeting Muslims, and some also target the political ecosystem of Kerala.

Muslim man trying to convert a tribal in Kerala?

​A user on X shared a video on June 4, 2025, which received over 3,500 likes and 1,700 reposts, accompanied by a caption suggesting that Muslims in Kerala are converting tribal communities to Islam.

In reality, the footage shows Salman Khan, an activist and politician from Hyderabad, Telangana, providing financial assistance to a local family. He had shared this video on his Instagram account on October 25, 2024, where it received 11,50,650 likes.In contrast, the footage depicts Salman Khan, an activist and politician hailing from Hyderabad, Telangana, offering financial assistance to a family from the region. Salman Khan shared this video on his Instagram account on October 25, 2024. The video received 11,50,650 likes.

Thus, the video does not depict any attempt at religious conversion in Kerala.

Muslims forcefully shut down the cultural program in Kerala?

The performance of a young violinist in Alappuzha became yet another instance for spreading hate against Muslims. Social media posts in July 2025 falsely alleged that the performance was forcibly stopped by Muslims.

​Source: link1, link2, link3.

The video shows Ganga Sasidharan, a young violinist performing at a temple festival in Alappuzha. We found that Manorama News had shared the same video on its official Instagram account, explaining that the police halted the concert because it had exceeded the permitted time limit for live music. Kerala Police discourages the use of loudspeakers and amplifiers between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., and prior permission is required for any exception. This clarifies that the video was circulated online with a false communal spin. Oneindia, an online media platform, also reported the incident on March 6, noting that the police action had led to public outrage. However, it is apparently clear that this has nothing to do with Muslims, contrary to the claims made by those spreading hate.

Kerala police raising Islamic slogans?

A X user shared a video on September 9, with a Hindi Caption which translates to,”The situation in Kerala is extremely alarming. Kerala Police Cadets, instead of Jai Hind, are saying Jai Hadisam. The police are raising religious slogans.”

The footage does not show the Kerala police chanting Islamic slogans; rather, it depicts the 2025 Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi procession in Kasaragod, Kerala, featuring the Arangadi scouts. Madrasa students, dressed in uniforms of various colors, lead processions and are a central part of the Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi celebrations in Kasaragod. A video of the 2025 celebration from Kottapara, Kasaragod, went viral online as the procession was seen paying respects to the Palakunnu Bhagavathi temple.

Video shows Gender Segregation in Kerala?

On October 20, the X user @TMoolamattom shared a video with a communal caption indicating that the video shows gender segregation in Kerala.

In what appears to be a coordinated effort, various X accounts, including @KreatelyMedia, @MeghUpdates, @ssaratht, and @the_kerala_girl, posted the same video connecting it to Kerala.
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Source: link1, link2, link3, link4.
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However, the video is from MOS Academy, a private institute in Nanded, Maharashtra. We reached out to Mohammad Aamer, Director of MOS Academy, who clarified that the footage is from his institute in Maharashtra, not Kerala. Therefore, social media users falsely linked the video to Kerala.

Sabarimala, old images and false context

The pilgrimage season for Sabarimala commenced on November 16 this year, and with it, false claims have emerged. On November 19, users on X circulated images claiming to depict the current conditions at Sabarimala. A user also used the # IslamicInvasion to share the photo.
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Source: link1, link2.

However, the images are old and unrelated to recent incidents at Sabarimala. The image of a girl lying near a dustbin dates back to 2018, while the photo of a child crying with folded hands dates to December 2023. It shows a child who panicked after being briefly separated from his father and was seeking help from a police personnel. Asianet News also reported the incident on December 12, 2023.

Does the video show LDF rally on a pothole-filled road, boasting about development?

On October 21, 2025, Anoop Antony Joseph, the Kerala Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) State General Secretary, shared a footage of individuals struggling to pass through a pothole-filled road. The caption implies that the video showcases a rally celebrating the accomplishments of the LDF government over the last decade in Kerala.

We identified that the video shows the Muipoth – Keezhapayyur Road in Cheruvannur, Kozhikode, Kerala, and we reached out to the Perambra Area Secretary of the CPI(M). He confirmed that the road shown in the video is from Cheruvannur Panchayat, which is governed by the Congress-led UDF. Furthermore, he mentioned that the UDF is in control of Cheruvannur Panchayat, while the LDF has been demonstrating due to the inadequate state of the local road in that specific ward, which is represented by a member of Congress.

Despite having multiple court orders, hate campaigns in India continue to grow.In Kaushal Kishor v. State of Uttar Pradesh (2023), the Supreme Court stated that hate speech is not just abusive language. It includes any expression that marginalises or undermines an entire community, showing its deep impact on society. In Vishal Tiwari vs Union of India (2025), the Court warned that efforts to spread communal hatred must be met with strong action. It reaffirmed that such speech cannot be justified under any circumstances. More recently, the Supreme Court urged both the Centre and states to control online hate speech. It pointed out the alarming rise in communal content on platforms like X and stressed that freedom of expression cannot excuse incitement. Yet, despite these strong statements, hate campaigns have only increased. Organised networks are using digital platforms to spread misinformation, communal narratives, and calls for hostility.