Who Is Riddhi Patel? Activist Faces Charges For Violent Threats, Hate Speech

"We'll see you at your house. We'll murder you." These were the threats thrown at the Bakersfield City Council members by the Indian-American, pro-Palestinian activist Riddhi Patel on April 10, as she went off on a rant about the Palestinian genocide. She was arrested the same day by the police after making harrowing threats towards the republican mayor Karen Goh and the council members. While initially put on a $2 million bail order, she was released on April 16 after reducing her bail amount to $5,00,000. 

Who Is Riddhi Patel?

Once a promising athlete, 28-year-old Riddhi Patel's fall into far-left politics was preluded by her joining the Centre for Race, Poverty and the Environment (CRPE), a non-profit organisation that provides legal and technical assistance to low-income and marginalised communities, where she worked as an economic development coordinator. Riddhi has had a controversial social media presence and has a history of going on anti-Hindu and anti-Modi rants. In a notable tweet from January 2021, she said, "F--k Modi. F--k BJP... F--k Hindu Fascism." 

On April 10, Riddhi and members of the pro-Palestine community were demanding the council to pass a resolution towards a ceasefire in Gaza and protesting against the metal detectors installed for the council meetings. Riddhi accused the council of attempting to 'criminalise' the protestors by placing security measures at council meetings. Her speech soon took a menacing tone. She threatened to guillotine the council members whilst referencing Gandhi and Jesus Christ. "You guys are all horrible human beings and Jesus would have killed you himself..." she said during the speech.

Mayor Karen Goh was quick to call the police, who escorted Riddhi out of the meeting. The judge who passed her sentence described her speech as "disappointing and disturbing." Riddhi was ordered to submit her passport, not leave the state and was placed on GPS monitoring. Five days after the incident, the CRPE terminated Riddhi, stating that they condemned any threats of violence. The pro-Palestinian community was also quick to denounce her actions, with the United Liberation Front, a pro-Palestinian organisation, making it clear that her actions do not align with their principles.