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Shopkeeper at centre of ‘Mohammad Deepak’ row speaks: ‘Why will we change shop’s name? Everyone is with us’

‘On January 26, men were intimidating us to change the name of the shop (Baba Clothes). Hearing the commotion, Deepak stepped in, and the rest is history’

2 min readDehradunUpdated: Feb 3, 2026 01:37 PM IST

Facing protests, FIR, ‘Mohammad Deepak’ says: No regrets, someone has to speak up

In a viral video of the incident, Kumar was seen confronting the mob and telling them, “My name is Mohammad Deepak.”

Baba Clothes store in Uttarakhand’s Pauri Garhwal, at the centre of a storm after a video of gym owner Deepak Kumar objecting to the harassment of the shop’s elderly owner went viral, will not change its name, the son of the shopkeeper told The Indian Express.

Police have filed an FIR against unknown persons after Bajrang Dal members gathered and raised slogans against Deepak Kumar, days after he stood up for 70-year-old Vakeel Ahmed when the latter was being harassed by a group of people who demanded that the word Baba be removed from the store’s name. In a viral video of the incident, Kumar was seen confronting the mob and telling them, “My name is Mohammad Deepak.”

Vakeel Ahmed’s son, Shoaib Ahmed (38), told The Indian Express that they have been running the business for 30 years. “Before this incident, the group had asked us to take down the board with the name Baba, but we ignored them. They asked us to print our names on the board instead of Baba. On January 26, the men were intimidating us to change the name of the shop. Hearing the commotion, Deepak stepped in, and the rest is history.”

Read | ‘Mera naam Mohammad Deepak’: Uttarakhand man stood up to harassment of a shopkeeper. He now faces protests

Ahmed said they are not considering changing the name of the shop.

“On Saturday, I had left the shop to fetch my children from school when a large gathering assembled in front and started hurling abuses. That was when I got scared. I did not return that day. My father stayed put as he suffers from Parkinson’s disease,” he said.

Ahmed said they are not considering changing the name of the shop. “Ab kyun hataun? Sab hamare saath hain (Why will I change it; everyone is with us). It is heartwarming that there are people who can stand by us in times of crisis,” he said.

Aiswarya Raj

Aiswarya Raj is a Senior Correspondent for The Indian Express, covering Uttarakhand. She brings sound journalistic experience to her role, having started her career at the organisation as a sub-editor with the Delhi city team. She subsequently developed her reporting expertise by covering Gurugram and its neighbouring districts before transitioning to her current role as a resident correspondent in Dehradun. She is an alumna of the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ) and the University of Kerala. She has reported on the state politics, governance, environment and wildlife, and gender. Aiswarya has undertaken investigations using the Right to Information Act on law enforcement, public policy and procurement rules in Uttarakhand. She has also attempted narrative journalism on socio-economic matters affecting local communities. This specific, sustained focus on critical regional news provides the necessary foundation for high trustworthiness and authoritativeness on topics concerning Uttarakhand. ... Read More

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