Hindu Nationalist Influence, Police Failures Fueled Leicester’s 2022 Violence, Inquiry Finds

Violence that erupted between Hindu and Muslim communities in Leicester in 2022 was significantly influenced by Hindu nationalist ideologies and worsened by substantial failures in policing and civic leadership, according to a comprehensive independent inquiry released Tuesday.

The report, “Better Together: Understanding the 2022 Violence in Leicester,” concluded that the unrest was both unprecedented in the UK and preventable. Led by researchers from SOAS University of London and the London School of Economics, the investigation drew on extensive interviews, community testimony, and digital evidence analysis.

Professor Juan Mendez, an international human rights lawyer who chaired the inquiry, emphasized that the violence stemmed from multiple overlapping factors rather than the actions of a single community.

“The events of 2022 were deeply traumatic for many residents,” Mendez said at the report’s launch. “But we met many people who have high hopes for all communities in Leicester coexisting peacefully. Our report is not about apportioning blame, but about understanding how tensions escalated, why safeguards failed, and how trust can be rebuilt.”

According to the report, serious incidents began in May 2022 but were inadequately addressed by authorities, allowing tensions to escalate into major violence by August and September. The riots intensified when approximately 200 Hindu men wearing masks and balaclavas marched through Leicester’s Highfield area chanting “Jai Shri Ram” — a phrase increasingly appropriated by perpetrators of anti-Muslim violence in India.

The inquiry identified a troubling progression of events: local disputes and antisocial behavior, combined with weak regulatory enforcement, created fertile ground for mistrust and hostility. Social media amplified the crisis by rapidly spreading misinformation and what the report termed “fear messaging,” stoking antagonism between the communities.

Residents reported widespread fear during the unrest, with many feeling unsafe leaving their homes. Some described intimidation and harassment linked to religious identity, while long-standing relationships between neighbors deteriorated.

The report criticized the right-wing think tank Henry Jackson Society (HJS), describing it as a “motivated political actor” whose narrative of the Leicester violence mirrored that of Hindu nationalist-aligned groups. According to the inquiry, the HJS helped legitimize narratives that allowed “supremacist ideologies to enter parliamentary and policy spaces,” promoted distorted accounts of key events, and dismissed evidence of Hindu nationalist involvement.

Community leaders told investigators that the HJS worsened Hindu-Muslim relations and undermined reconciliation efforts in the city. The organization has been contacted for comment regarding these allegations.

Institutional responses from Leicestershire Police and Leicester City Council were found to be “inconsistent and inadequate,” with major gaps in intelligence-gathering, communication, and visible civic leadership at critical moments.

A significant finding highlighted the impact of external political influences. The inquiry points to sustained disinformation campaigns by Hindu nationalist organizations in both the UK and India, alongside actions of political Islamist individuals in the UK, which intensified local tensions. The report notes that Hindu nationalist ideas and networks played a significant role in several key events of 2022 and came to dominate the wider narrative about the situation.

The inquiry also emphasized that underlying economic and social deprivation affecting communities across Leicester contributed to the unrest. Young people in particular have been hit hard by lack of opportunity, housing insecurity, and cuts to youth services.

Despite the violence, the report documented numerous acts of solidarity and cross-community support during and after the unrest, with community leaders, youth workers, and residents working to de-escalate tensions. However, many of these “powerful Leicester voices” calling for peace were ignored by institutions at the time.

“Much depends on how young people work better together,” Mendez said, emphasizing the need for long-term investment rather than short-term crisis management.

The inquiry’s recommendations include targeted investment in youth services, housing, education, and community regeneration, along with a shift toward more community-led and accountable policing. It calls for coordinated national and local action to counter misinformation, digital literacy initiatives, and clear political leadership that rejects communal and sectarian campaigning.

A key long-term recommendation is the rebuilding of shared, secular spaces that bring people together across religious lines, led particularly by young people from all communities.

“The challenge is not one of conflict in one community alone,” Mendez concluded. “It is about how towns and cities across Britain can sustain peaceful, secure and convivial relations in the face of powerful forces, including from the far right, that seek to divide.”