“Majid Novsarka, also known as Majid Freeman, 36, of Cecil Road, Leicester, has been charged with encouragement of terrorism and supporting a proscribed organisation,” said the Leicestershire police.
He has been released on bail and is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on July 24.
Who is Majid Freeman
Freeman, a self proclaimed community acitivist, played a significant role in fueling misinformation and exacerbating tensions during the 2022 Leicester unrest
The 36-year-old, described as a “radical Islamist”, repeatedly spread dangerous lies and unverified claims about the Leicester violence.
- He falsely claimed that a Muslim boy was attacked by 30+ Hindus, despite the police saying they had no evidence of such an incident.
- He alleged that Hindu men had attempted to abduct a Muslim girl, which the police later investigated but said the incident had not actually occurred as claimed.
Freeman’s posts on social media “continued to propagate misinformation and the branding of Leicester Hindus as ‘RSS Hindutva thugs'”.
His false claims were then amplified and used by journalists to portray the events in a biased way against Hindus.
Freeman was being probed as a key instigator who spread harmful misinformation and false narratives that inflamed tensions and contributed to the unrest in Leicester.
What happened in the 2022 Leicester unrest
The 2022 Leicester unrest was a series of clashes between Hindu and Muslim communities in the city of Leicester, England. The unrest began in August-September 2022 following a march by around 300 men, some with their faces covered, who were chanting slogans falsely associated with Hindu nationalism.
This triggered counter-demonstrations by Muslim men, leading to escalating tensions and violence between the two groups in different areas of the city.
The unrest was preceded by social media campaigning, misinformation and hate propaganda.
Subsequent independent investigations found Hindu places of worship were desecerated, and Hindu men specifically targeted by mobs.