1980 Moradabad riots

The 1980 Moradabad riots, also known as the Moradabad Muslim Massacre, refers to violence that happened in the Indian city of Moradabad during August–November 1980. When a pig entered the local Idgah during the Eid festival prayer on 13 August, local Muslims asked the police to remove the pig, but the police refused to do so. This led to a confrontation between the police and the Muslims. The police responded with indiscriminate firing, which led to over one hundred deaths. This was followed by a series of violent incidents which became religious in nature, and led to arson, looting and murders.

The violent incidents continued until November 1980. The total death tally is uncertain: the government recognized and paid compensation for 400 deaths, while the unofficial estimates run as high as 2500. The riots greatly affected the city's noted brassware industry, which saw a sharp decline in the production and export figures. Journalist and BJP MP MJ Akbar wrote in his book Riot after Riot that the incident "was not a Hindu-Muslim riot but a calculated cold-blooded massacre of Muslims by a rabidly communal police force which tried to cover up its genocide by making it out to be a Hindu-Muslim riot.” EPW correspondent Krishna Gandhi claimed that the "group of criminals supported by ML leaders" were responsible for the massacres. According to him, the firing occurred after Muslims beat up policemen, and the excesses committed by the police were, according to him, a reaction to Muslim attacks.