Uttarkashi mahapanchayat: VHP, Bajrang Dal take charge of event

Wasim Ahmad, media in-charge of Muslim Seva Sangathan said that a mahapanchayat of Muslim religious leaders is being organised under the leadership of Dehradun Shehar Qazi Mohammad Ahmad Kazmi on June 18 in Dehradun to discuss the current atmosphere of hatred against Muslims across Uttarakhand. “With the recent incidents where Muslims were forced to leave their respective towns, we want to put pressure on the state government that the whole community should not be targeted,” he said.

Talking to The Indian Express, Pradhan Sangathan president Ankit Rawat said the administration denied them the permission for the mahapanchayat saying that “ours is a constitutional organisation and we should not organise an event that can cause tension”. “Now the Bajrang Dal has taken responsibility to organise the event. We are also with them and will attend the event,” said Rawat. He said that around 4,000-5,000 people are expected to attend and “possibility of violence cannot be denied”.

Virendra Rawat, working president of the VHP in Purola, confirmed that the VHP and Bajrang Dal have now taken the responsibility to organise the event. He said that no permission is needed from the administration.

Uttarkashi District Magistrate (DM) Abhishek Ruhela said that on Monday they had a discussion with all the stakeholders and requested them to make sure that they all live in peace. He said no one reached out to them seeking permission for any event.

“In the meeting on Monday night, we talked to the Muslim shopkeepers who said that there is no direct pressure on them to shut their shops,” said Ruhela.

He said that in some places a permission from the administration is mandatory for such events, but that is not the case here.