Uttarakhand: Muslims at Receiving End of Right-Wing Wrath in ‘Devbhoomi’

Dehradun: The minority Muslim population of Uttarakhand, which is also known as ‘Devbhoomi’ (Land of Gods), has been at the receiving end of the wrath of Right-wing groups having protection of the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) government. The Muslim community has been facing accusations of ‘Love Jehad’, ‘Land Jehad’, ‘Mazar Jehad’, ‘Thook Jehad’ and even ‘Nakal Jehad’, manufactured by none other than Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, who is emerging as the young icon of ‘Hindutva’, for the past few years. But, the incidents in the past week across the state, indicate that with a view to polarising the society ahead of the Assembly polls, Right-wing groups have become more active at the ground level.

During the past week, incidents targeting Muslims were reported from Joshimath town in Chamoli district to the plains of Bahadarabad town in Haridwar district. In one incident, Muslims persons were beaten up for offering ‘Namaz’, while in another case, collective penal action was initiated by the authorities for offering ‘Namaz’ during the ongoing holy month of Ramzan. 

Slogans have been pasted on the newly constructed Dehradun-New Delhi Highway announcing that the highway is not for Muslims, while derogatory pamphlets against the minority community were distributed along with the morning newspapers in capital city, Dehradun.             

It was in Joshimath town that the office of the Sub-Divisional Magistrate initiated preventive proceedings against 35 Muslims for offering ‘Taraweeh namaz’ inside a government building and even in private buildings, citing apprehension of breach of peace. The 35 Muslims are local shopkeepers and small traders.

The trouble for the community in Joshimath began following the start of the fasting month of Ramzan on February 19. The Muslim community, like in the previous years, had taken permission to hold ‘Taraweeh namaz’ (night prayers) at an under-construction government building hall. But soon a video of the ‘namaz’ being held went viral on social media inviting objections from Hindutva groups.

The district administration, based on a police report on February 23, expressed concern that tension in the area could escalate due to the prayers. The report stated that if timely action was not taken, breach of peace may occur and “a cognizable offence cannot be ruled out.”  The report also mentioned that namaz was also offered at private places, which had led to resentment among some local residents.

The notice stated that “Due to this action of the people of the Muslim community, there is full possibility of breach of peace and order in the police station area. The facts recorded in the beat information have been found correct. The above persons can disturb the peace and order by fighting and quarrelling in the said dispute, due to which the occurrence of a cognizable offence cannot be ruled out.”

After examining the police report, the magistrate observed: “I have examined the challan report and considered the facts stated therein that the above persons may commit a cognizable offence involving breach of peace at any time. I am fully satisfied with the report.”

The court had directed all the named individuals to appear before it on February 28, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. They have been instructed to furnish a personal bond of ₹20,000 along with sureties to ensure maintenance of peace. Since the SDM was not present that day, the case was postponed but personal bonds were filed by the Muslim persons.

The preventive proceedings have been initiated under Sections 126/135 of the CrPC, which empower magistrates to require bonds for “keeping the peace” in cases of anticipated disturbance.

Atul Sati, a local resident and leader of the CPI(ML), noted that the Muslim community had been offering ‘Taraweeh prayers’ for the past many years at Nagarpalika hall with permission, but this time they were allotted an under-construction sports hall, leading to the controversy.

On February 22 night, at Bahadarbad town of Haridwar district, Feroz Alam, a truck driver from Sambhal was mercilessly beaten up by a group of men with sticks and belts after knowing about his identity. Instead of taking action against the culprits, applications were received from both sides. Finally, at a panchayat held on Thursday night,  Alam was pressured to compromise stating that ‘nothing’ had happened with him.

In another incident at Rudrapur town of Udham Singh Nagar district, a Muslim labourer, Mohammed Shahid, was mercilessly beaten up by one Arvind Sharma for offering prayers in an open field. He was kicked and beaten with a stick by Sharma, who is believed to be a manager of a nearby temple. A complaint has been lodged with the police by Shahid.

In a representation to the Uttarakhand Director General of Police, Opposition party leaders, namely, Sanjay Garg of Congress, Satyanarain Sachhan of Samajwadi Party, Samar Bhandari of Communist Party of India, Indresh Maikhuri of CPI(ML), Harbir Singh Kushwaha of Sarvodya Mandal, Vinod Badoni and Shanker Gopal of Chetna Andolan, sought action against ‘Devbhoomi Raksha Manch’  who distributed derogatory pamphlets along with daily newspapers in some areas of Dehradun city on February 23, 2026.

A procession was also taken out in the city based on the call given in the pamphlet but no police action was taken. They reminded the DGP about the Supreme Court directive in 2018 to police to take ‘suo motu’ action against such divisive forces.   

In another incident, women volunteers of Hindu Raksha Dal (HRD) painted on the walls of the newly constructed Dehradun-New Delhi Highway near Mohand in Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, stating that “Muslims are not allowed to use the Highway”. Lalit Sharma, an HRD leader, claimed that they would continue to indulge in such activities in mosques too. Defending his action, he argued that the highways and roads were built with taxpayer money and “only Hindus pay taxes, not Muslims”. Later, the police blackened the slogans written on the highway.  

The writer is a senior freelance journalist based in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.