Attack on Malala, Anne Frank readers: mob seeks proof for ‘non-Muslim’

Ahmedabad: A peaceful reading gathering in Ahmedabad turned violent after a Hindutva mob confronted and attacked students and book lovers for reading books by Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai and Holocaust victim Anne Frank, amid a wider communal controversy over the books.

The incident took place at Vastrapur Garden on Thursday, where members of the Student and Youth Collective had organised a silent reading session after Ahmedabad’s Anand Niketan School removed Malala’s I Am Malala and Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl from its library and curriculum.

According to organisers, the attackers created a commotion, demanded that participants prove they were not Muslims, and allegedly threatened and assaulted them. Protesters were reportedly beaten and forcibly taken to the Vastrapur police station, while a girl filming the incident was also allegedly threatened.

Ahmedabad Police said a case had been registered against about 18 mob members and two identifiable accused. Three people have been detained based on CCTV footage, with further investigation underway.

The confrontation follows an earlier controversy at Anand Niketan School. After parents and Hindutva groups, including the Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad, protested over a glass fragment allegedly found in canteen food, the dispute reportedly acquired a communal dimension. The groups objected to the inclusion of Malala’s and Anne Frank’s books after a school consultant introduced changes to the curriculum.

Following a notice from district authorities, the school removed both books and dismissed the consultant and canteen supervisor. The latest attack has now intensified concerns over the targeting of people merely for reading the controversial books.