With the Indian media busy blaming the coronavirus outbreak in India almost entirely on the Tablighi Jamaat, a Muslim missionary movement, social media is being peppered with random videos of Muslims to allege that members of the minority community have been deliberately spreading the virus.

The Jamaat organised a congregation at its headquarters in Delhi’s Nizamuddin West from March 13 to 15. In the weeks since, several dozen of the attendees have tested positive for the virus, and at least eight have died. Nizamuddin has now been declared one of India’s 10 “hotspots” of coronavirus outbreak.

As is their wont, star TV anchors have quickly pounced on this tragedy to peddle bigotry. Taking a cue from them, social media users are now sharing old videos to whip up anti-Muslims hatred.

One such video shows a group of boys licking spoons and plates. It is shared with some variation of the accusation that the Muslims are “systematically” spreading the coronavirus. “They are spreading on each other, they are already out, going to places strategically,” reads one message circulated with the video on Whatsapp.