The Uttarakhand police have registered an FIR against Deepak Kumar and Vijay Rawat, two men who intervened when members of right-wing groups allegedly harassed an elderly Muslim shopkeeper in Kotdwar on January 26, demanding that he change his shop’s name.
The police have also lodged an FIR against two named and a few unnamed men based on the complaint of the Muslim shopkeeper, Ahmed Wakil, who runs ‘Baba school dress’. The charges include trespassing, intentional insults intended to provoke breach of public peace, criminal intimidation, and causing hurt.
Another FIR was registered against unnamed members of right-wing groups on the charge of breach of peace for blocking a national highway on January 31 to express their anger over the intervention of Mr. Kumar and Mr. Rawat. All three FIRs were lodged on Saturday (January 31, 2026) evening, the police said.
Sarvesh Panwar, Superintendent of Police of Pauri Garhwal, told The Hindu on Sunday (February 1, 2026) that the FIR against Mr. Kumar and Mr. Rawat was lodged following a complaint filed by Gaurav Kashyap and Kamal Pal, members of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal, respectively. They were booked on charges of criminal intimidation, voluntarily causing hurt, rioting, and breach of peace.
