While rhetoric targeting minorities is nothing new in Indian politics, some lamented what they saw as a new low reached by Narendra Modi's ruling party

India's ruling party has been accused of "open hate-mongering" after releasing an AI-generated video targeting Muslims in the election-bound northeastern state of Assam.

The video, shared by the official X account of the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) Assam state chapter, portrays Muslims as illegal immigrants who seize land owned by the government across the northeastern Indian state.

The video showed Muslims, mostly men wearing an Islamic skull cap, a traditional tunic and a loongi or a traditional South Asian sarong, at government establishments such as airports, tea estates, heritage sites, and the stadium in the capital, Guwahati. Muslim women in the video were depicted wearing a hijab or burqa.

Captions on the video said it portrayed "Assam without [the] BJP" and called it the "dream" of opposition deputy leader Gaurav Gogoi, who is Assamese. It also claimed an unspecified "link" between Mr Gogoi's opposition Congress party and Pakistan, showing opposition leader Rahul Gandhi addressing a crowd alongside the Pakistani flag.

The video falsely claimed that the state's Muslim population would rise to 90 per cent over an unspecified period - a nod to the wider so-called "replacement theory", stoked by right-wing groups, that Muslims will one day replace Hindus as India's majority religion. Muslims currently comprise 34.22 per cent of Assam's total population of 10.7 million, according to the most recent census conducted in 2011.

The video emerged ahead of state assembly elections scheduled for spring 2026, where the ruling Hindu nationalist BJP aims to secure another term in power.

Critics argued that the video risked fuelling hatred against the minority community and stoking tensions in a state where Muslims have long been targeted over their ethno-religious identity.

Christopher Clary, associate professor of political science at the University at Albany, called it "arguably the most communal advertisement I can ever recall watching". The word communal is typically used in India to refer to something that fuels religious hatred or division.

Author and academic Apoorvanand wrote: "This open hate-mongering by the ruling party BJP against Muslims is scary. It is a call for violence. How is it being allowed? How are we tolerating it?"

Congress party spokesperson Lavanya Ballal Jain called the video "xenophobic" and "utterly disgusting". "The British started the divide and rule, the BJP perfected it," she said, a reference to colonial-era strategy.

"What a terrible ad! As a nation, we must resolve that hate and xenophobic content have no space in our political discourse. To humiliate people this way is not correct," said political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla.

"This cannot be India. This is so hateful and wrong. Is this kind of hate mongering truly going to go unchecked? What is happening?" asked actor Shreya Dhanwanthary.

Suhasini Haidar, diplomatic affairs editor at The Hindu newspaper, wrote: "In a democracy, a 'national' party doesn't seek votes by demonising a religious community; it offers representation to all," added that "the Election Commission would know what to do about an ad like this".

The Independent has reached out to the BJP for comment.

Home to both Bengali and Assamese speaking Hindus and Muslims and tribes, Assam has witnessed a decades-long anti-immigration movement targeting "outsiders" from neighbouring Bangladesh. The BJP in Assam has frequently accused Muslims in the state of being undocumented immigrants.

Since securing power in Assam in 2016, the BJP has consolidated its Hindu and tribal voter base through a series of policies that critics describe as discriminatory towards Muslims. Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is among senior party leaders who have repeatedly singled out the community in public speeches.

Allegations of Islamophobia in the BJP go right to the top of the party: a Human Rights Watch report found that Mr Modi made Islamophobic remarks in 110 out of the 173 speeches he delivered during the election campaign for the 2024 general elections, where he won a third term in power, albeit with a smaller number of seats.

On Sunday, Mr Modi made a visit to Assam where he accused Congress of standing in support of "anti-nationals" and "infiltrators" to safeguard their votes - both terms are Hindu nationalist dog-whistles.

The BJP's Assam unit has repeatedly targeted Muslims in the state and Congress parliamentarian Mr Gogoi through AI-generated videos. The account often refers to Muslims as "Kanglus" -- a derogatory slur used to refer to people from Bangladesh, and Mr Gogoi as the "messiah of miyah". "Miyah" is commonly used as an honorific for Muslim men in South Asia. In Assam, the term has taken on a derogatory meaning, targeting Muslims who migrated from the eastern part of Bengal, present-day Bangladesh, after the 1947 partition.

The BJP has also been known to share AI-generated videos depicting Mr Gogoi wearing a skull cap and speaking on the phone with Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir. The BJP has claimed Mr Gogoi has links with Pakistan - a claim dismissed by the Congress MP.

Mr Sarma on Friday said the state cabinet would discuss a report by a Special Investigation Team on Mr Gogoi's alleged links with Pakistan after the local elections. He claimed that the 96-page report submitted to the government was a "very explosive" document that was related to India's security.

Mr Gogoi previously claimed he visited Pakistan only once about 12 years ago and that the BJP would "flop miserably".

Backlash against 'hate-mongering' BJP video targeting Muslims in Assam