‘Foremost a human being’: Deepak, who confronted Bajrang Dal for harassing Muslim shopkeeper
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Police in Uttarakhand have filed FIRs against unidentified persons after members of the Bajrang Dal staged protests in Kotdwar against Deepak Kumar, a local gym owner, who had fearlessly confronted a group of Bajrang Dal members when they were harassing an elderly Muslim shopkeeper and demanding that he change his shop’s name in Uttarakhand’s Kotdwar.
In a video message to Maktoob Media, Kumar said, “I am not a Hindu, I am not a Muslim, I am not a Sikh, and I am not a Christian. First and foremost, I am a human being. Because after I die, I have to answer to God and to humanity, not to any religion.”
The episode that led to the protests unfolded on January 26, when Kumar was at a friend’s shop in the Pauri Garhwal area and overheard a group of men heckling and threatening the shopkeeper next door, Vakeel Ahmed, over the use of the word ‘Baba’ in the name of his shop, which has been operating on Patel Marg for nearly three decades.
According to video footage of the incident, Kumar questioned why Ahmed was being targeted when other shopkeepers freely used the same word, and when asked his own name by the crowd, he replied, “My name is Mohammad Deepak,” a response he later told The Indian Express was intended to assert equality before the law and a shared Indian identity.
In subsequent video messages cited by Maktoob Media, Kumar explained that his words were deliberate and meant to merge identities rather than erase them, as he sought to articulate an idea of India in which faith could not be weaponised to strip individuals of dignity.
“I just want to say this to all of you—to my brothers, sisters, and friends—that our country needs love and affection, not hatred. You can spread as much hatred as you want; there is no stopping that. But spreading love is a very big thing,” he said, even as the personal cost of that stand became apparent.
Soon after the videos circulated, Kumar’s Instagram account was inundated with abuse, while Hindu right-wing social media handles across X, Instagram, and Facebook branded him a “traitor” and hurled slurs, with threats eventually spilling from online spaces into the streets of Kotdwar.
On Saturday, dozens of Bajrang Dal members gathered outside Kumar’s gym and nearby areas, raising slogans and demanding that he come out, while also blocking sections of the national highway and obstructing traffic.
According to The Indian Express, police personnel deployed at the spot witnessed the protesters intimidating officers, removing barricades, and attempting to incite communal disharmony, leading to the registration of an FIR against 30 to 40 unidentified individuals under sections related to unlawful assembly, obstructing public servants, promoting enmity, and blocking a national highway.
Senior Superintendent of Police Sarvesh Panwar said investigations were underway, that video footage was being used to identify those involved, and that additional security had been deployed amid concerns of further mobilisation.
Separately, based on a complaint filed by Ahmed, police booked two named individuals and their associates under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including provisions related to criminal intimidation and house trespass.