Haldwani (Uttarakhand): For 28-year-old Nafeesa—a gaunt, young woman and mother of four children aged three to 11—making a living was always difficult, with the family barely surviving on her husband’s daily wages of about Rs 400 a day as an itinerant labourer.

Life became even more difficult after 12 February 2024, four days after riots erupted after the demolition of a mosque and madrasa here in this southeastern Uttarakhand city, regarded as the state’s commercial capital. 

Early that afternoon, the police picked up her husband, Shueb. “Two policemen came to our home and said, ‘We are just taking you for some questioning, we will release you soon,’” she said. But it’s been four days since he’s gone. I have no idea where he is.” 

Police sweeps in the area began after at least five died in police firing on Muslim mobs, and a curfew kept local housebound in the Muslim-dominated neighbourhood of Banbhoolpura. Hundreds were arbitrarily detained, locals alleged. In interviews, families of some of those detained alleged police violence and vandalism and said they had no idea what legal recourse to take. 

On Saturday, 17 February, Nafeesa finally heard that her husband had been taken to a local jail called Heeranagar. For almost a week, according to her, the police were hostile when she tried to find her husband.  

“The police used the most dirty and humiliating abuses when I went to the thana (police station) to ask about my husband,” said Nafeesa, crying as she narrated what she said transpired. “Didn’t they realise that I have small children, and still they used such humiliating abuses and told me to go away?”

We have withheld some of the sexually coloured abuses that Nafeesa attributed to the police. 

On 24 February, at a press conference, Uttarakhand director general of police (DGP) Abhinav Kumar addressed specific allegations (here and here) of women being abused and said the police were “clear” and “transparent” in their investigations. The police, he added, did not know of any such allegations “with evidence”. 

“The Uttarakhand police always respect women,” said Kumar, adding that any woman with complaints could submit those to a forthcoming magisterial inquiry.

When we spoke to her, Nafeesa said she did not know what the charges against her husband were and how she could get legal help. “I went to meet Shueb on the 22nd,” said Nafeesa. “We don’t have a lawyer yet, I only knew the allegations against him from a local newspaper, which claimed he was a rioter." 

She has stopped sending two school-going children to school. The family got by, said Nafeesa, thanks to the charity of the local maulvi (priest) and neighbours.  

Allegations Of Police Excesses

In Banbhoolpura, home to about 50,000, a collection of both big and small homes and businesses—an area known for supplying the rest of the city batashay (a meringue-like sugar sweet) and khilonas (edible toy-shaped sugar offerings) during Diwali—stories like Nafeesa are common, particularly in a working-class area called Gafoor Basti, marked by narrow lanes and open sewers. 

More than 80 have been arrested, and three first information reports (FIRs) registered mention 5,000 unnamed persons. Schools had been used as torture centres, according to a report by a fact-finding mission, and the homes of nine alleged rioters were seized by the local government, run by chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

With post-mortem reports awaited, the families of at least three of those killed alleged to this reporter they had been shot above the waist, while district magistrate Vandana Singh said the police had orders to fire “below the waist”, with “maximum force” used to protect a police station attacked by a Muslim mob. 

The police opened fire, said Singh, after some people in the mob fired at the police station with locally made weapons. 

Haldwani’s member of legislative assembly (MLA) Sumit Hridayesh told Article 14 that while he and his fellow Congress party members in the state believed those involved in the riots “should be duly prosecuted”, he said that “the law and order lapses on part of the government and authorities can't be overlooked either”.

“Why put in a curfew after the violence occurred and people died? Why not do it earlier if you knew you were going to demolish these structures?” said Hridayesh. “Not since independence has Haldwani seen this kind of violence and killings. That's why we as the Opposition and Congress have demanded an independent probe by a sitting judge of the high court.”

Videos and photos shared by locals show  police picking up people from their homes, abusing them and vandalising vehicles. 

Article 14 sought comment on allegations of police abuse from senior superintendent of police Prahlad Narayan Meena and DGP Kumar. 

“No such incident has been brought to our notice so far,” said Kumar.  “As of now these are merely allegations without any credible proof.” 

In one video, police kick open doors and beat people with lathis. Two videos, including one taken from afar, show police throwing stones and bricks on vehicles. Another taken from a CCTV camera shows two men—one in uniform—their faces hidden by helmets, smashing window panes of cars.

The language in these videos and allegations by locals like Nafeesa, said experts, was not entirely surprising given how Hindu society, in a state that is known as dev bhoomi or God’s land, has been radicalised, with an atmosphere fertile for violence. 

Bias In Demolitions

The conflagration in Haldwani was preceded by a series of arbitrary decisions and a spate of statewide demolitions, culminating with municipal authorities demolishing Banbhoolpura’s 21-year-old Mariyam mosque and the Abdul Razzaq Zakariya madrasa.

As Article 14 has chronicled (here and here), BJP governments in north India have demolished Muslim properties (see our video report from Delhi) with no regard to the law. 

In February, an Amnesty International report recorded how demolitions in five states (not including Uttarakhand) ignored “any of the due process safeguards outlined in domestic law or international human rights law… without offering any prior consultation, adequate notice, or alternative resettlement opportunities”. 

In Uttarakhand, 465 Muslim shrines and other structures were demolished in 2023 alone, the website The Print reported in August 2023, so there was clearly pent-up anger and frustration, said experts. Dhami’s government had said “encroachments” on government land were being removed with no regard to religion, but the website Scroll reported on 21 February 2024 that no more than 45 temples and two gurudwaras were removed.

“Despite non-Muslim owned religious properties also being on forest land, they have only been targeting our dargahs and mazaars” (shrines and mausoleums),” said Hashmat Ali, a Haldwani right-to-information (RTI) activist and member of the governing committee of a dargah or Islamic shrine in Kathgodam, 8 km to the north.

Ali said that information he obtained via RTI for the district of Nainital, in which Haldwani is located, revealed at least 42 temples and 14 mazaars  built illegally on forest land, “but they have only demolished the mazaars, not the temples”. 

As an example, Ali pointed to the May 2023 demolition of the Thapli Baba mazaar in Ramnagar tehsil, frequented by Hindus and Muslims. 

“They demolished this mazaar, but the Garjiya Mata temple located in the same area has actually been earmarked for preservation from monsoons and climate change and a budget allocated,” said Ali. In February 2024, Scroll reported bias in preservation and demolition of places of worship. 

Hindu extremists and vigilantes have terrorised and beaten Muslims in Uttarakhand, demanded that they leave the state, marked their properties with black crosses, and right-wing propaganda outlets have spread stories about ‘rape-jihad’, claiming Muslims were sexually attacking cows, with the chief minister himself echoing their language.

Dhami has blamed Muslims for love and land jihad—conspiracy theories floated by Hindu extremists—“population imbalance” and changes in demography. 

Six months after Dhami became chief minister in July 2021, Hindu monks met in the holy city of Haridwar in Uttarakhand for a dharam sansad or a congregation of faith, where they delivered hate speeches over two days in December, telling Hindus that an economic boycott was not enough. 

Hindus had to “get ready to kill” and pick up weapons for a safai abhiyan (cleanliness drive), said the monks.

In Uttarakhand, the feeling that minorities have been abandoned by the majority, and the State had joined in their dehumanisation is acute, as Article 14 reported in September 2023. 

Genesis Of A Riot

The Haldwani mosque and the madrasa demolished were built in 2002, according to the government on what is called  nazool land, and were looked after by a contractor named Abdul Malik along with his wife Safia. 

Nazool land refers to government-owned land that is leased out for 15 to 99 years, including for welfare purposes, such as schools, hospitals and public utilities and so on. 

Uttarakhand has nearly 24.2 million sq m of nazool land. District magistrate Singh claimed that the demolitions were part of an “anti-encroachment drive” on nazool land of the Nagar Nigam or municipal council. 

Notices had been sent to the alleged “encroachers” on 30 January 2024, according to officials, to prove that they owned the land on which the mosque and madrasa stood, and the failure to do so sparked the demolition. 

But according to a 6 February petition that Safia Malik filed in the Uttarakhand High Court, the land on which the mosque and madrasa were built was leased out in 1937 and sold to their family in 1994. 

The Maliks’ application for renewal of their lease had been pending before the district administration since 2007, Safia told the court. On 8 February, Justice Pankaj Purohit set 14 February for the next hearing, but  officials wasted no time in demolishing the mosque and madrasa that evening. 

As news of the demolition and presence of bulldozers reached Banbhoolpura’s locals, many—including women and children—gathered to protest at the epicentre of the violence, popularly known as Malik ka Bageecha, the richer part of the area and where the police station is located. 

Violence broke out soon after, said officials and locals, with police and municipal authorities alleging that locals hurled a barrage of stones and later set the local police station on fire. Locals alleged that police beat and baton-charged them after the demolition, cut off the area’s electricity and used tear-gas and water-cannons and then opened fire. 

At least 100 police personnel and three journalists were injured, and many vehicles were damaged or burned. By evening on 8 February, a curfew was imposed and the Internet suspended in Banbhoolpura.

Shock & Sorrow

A construction-material supplier like his late father, Mohammad Aman, 21, said it was around 7:30 pm on 8 February that his father Zahid Hussain ventured out of their home to buy milk from the local dairy. His younger brother Anas, 18, did not think this was a good idea and went to search for their father. 

“Our family didn’t think a packet of milk could prove so costly”, said Aman, visibly shaken. 

Aman recalled receiving a call from a friend, who said that his father had been shot. He ran out and saw his father, still alive, lying on the road, said Aman, about a km away from Malik ka Bageecha. 

Aman also discovered his younger brother, who had been shot, he said, in the chest but alive. He and a relative, Adil, arranged for a cart to first carry their father to the nearest hospital. They were stopped and beaten by police, alleged Aman. 

“At least 10-15 of them started beating us,” according to Aman, who alleged his father’s and brother’s condition did not stop them. “They even beat my father up, who was already shot. They were yelling Jai Shri Ram and beating us with sticks.”

“There is ample evidence to suggest that the violent mob that carried out the attack on district administration and police authorities on 8 February damaged and burnt dozens of vehicles,” said DGP Kumar, who added that a  magisterial inquiry would be conducted by the commissioner of the neighboring district of Kumaon. 

“We intend to act without any bias in full accordance with the law,” said Kumar.

Aman said he managed to wheel his father and brother to a hospital, where his father was declared dead. His brother was alive, he said, but needed blood. They were then taken by Aman and Adil to another hospital where both were declared dead.  

“First we tried Krishna hospital but they refused and said my father was already dead,” said Aman, fighting back tears. “So then we went to Bombay Hospital where they declared them both dead.”

The neighbourhood’s Bank of Baroda CCTV cameras “could prove the police beat us up”, said Aman, “if they were operational at that time, because all this happened next to their ATM”.  

Even as he recounted their ordeal, his grandmother, 58-year-old Mumtaz Begum consoled her daughter and Aman’s mother, Simmi, who was too shocked to speak more than six days after the deaths of her husband and son.

With her daughter’s head resting on her shoulder, Begum recounted how her son-in-law Zahid, fondly known as Johnny, was the primary breadwinner of the family, working in the construction business. 

“Not only have they taken lives, they’ve also ruined us economically,” said Begum. “Now we have no one to support us.”

While the family said that the local sub-divisional magistrate came home, expressed condolences and discussed the possibility of compensation, Begum said her mind was full of unanswered questions. 

“When the shoot-at-sight orders came at 9 pm, why did the police fire at 7 pm?” she said. “How is this possible?”

There is no official word about the timing of the “shoot-at-sight” order. A local journalist, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the state’s assistant director for information, Ravi Bijarniya, had notified local media about the shoot-on-sight directives by 8 pm.  

When Article 14 sought comment from Bijarniya, he declined comment, saying that only the district administration would have information about  the timing of the order. 

“These are post-facto allegations,” said DGP Kumar. “First of all there's no such thing in law as shoot-at-sight orders. Second, the police firing is the subject of a magisterial inquiry by commissioner Kumaon.” 

“If there is credible evidence to suggest that the police action was not in accordance with the law then that should be presented before this inquiry,” said Kumar. “To the best of my knowledge, every action by the police was taken in accordance with due procedure.”

Back At Work After Father Shot Dead

Barely 100 m from Zahid and Anas’ home is that of Mohammed Israr, 54, a driver who succumbed to bullet injuries on 13 February, the sixth day after the violence, even as his son Mohammad Suhail was back at his job as a salesman at a car showroom. 

“I am the only one who now has a stable job in our family,” said Suhail, 23.  “There’s five of us I have to look after.” 

Suhail’s younger brother Mohammad Amaan, 17, alleged he saw police shooting their father in the back of his head at around 8 pm when he was parking the car that he drove. 

“When I started to walk towards him after he parked his car, literally in front of my own eyes, the police fired at him,” said Amaan. “The lights were all off, Internet suspended, so we couldn’t see any name tag or face of the cop in question. They shot him in the back of his head.” 

Both brothers rushed to pick Israr up and take him to a nearby hospital, where they were informed that doctors could not help him. 

“So we took him to Krishna hospital, but even there they told us to take him to Sushila Tiwari hospital,” said Amaan. “It must have been around 12 or 1 am when he finally got ventilator support at Sushila Tiwari.” 

Israr remained unconscious and on ventilator support for five days, before dying on the morning of 13 February. 

Many locals alleged that the death toll in police firing was “much higher” than the official number of five, claiming “at least 15 to 20” may have died, with many of those seriously injured in hospitals outside Haldwani and no way of confirming if they were dead or alive. 

At least five people from Gafoor basti referred to the death of one Aris, 17 or 18 years old, not being officially recorded, but was reported by the Indian Express on 13 February 2024 He was shot in the head and leg, according to Suhail, who says he got to know of this while admitting his own father to the hospital.

 “When I went to Sushila Tiwari hospital for my father, I saw that he (Aris) was also admitted there initially,” said Suhail. “But his family couldn’t treat him here, so they decided to go to Bareilly (101 km to the south in the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh) to treat him. But he has since died. The whole family has fled to Bareilly since his death and buried him there.” 

Allegations Of Police Violence

Anno (who goes by her first name), a 50-year-old widow from Gafoor basti described to this reporter how her son Bhola Suhail, 22, a mason and her only source of support, was picked up on 12 February by policemen who barged into their house and demanded to see him. 

“So, my son agreed to go with them,” said Anno, who has not seen him since. “I’m hearing rumours he has been kept in detention somewhere and beaten, both his legs broken. I don’t know how we eat, sleep, live with such rumours.” 

In the compound of the Chirag Ali Shah Baba dargah near Anno’s home, locals gathered around at least a dozen cars and tempos with shattered windscreens, the damage, they alleged, inflicted by the police. 

H, 22, speaking on condition of anonymity, fished out his phone. “I secretly filmed the police vandalising our mohalla’s cars. Look at this!” he exclaimed, showing  a video of a man in uniform smashing a car with a stone. With Internet services resuming in the area, more such videos were shared with Article 14.

Among those gathered around was a dishevelled man named Mohammad Ashfaq, 45, who claimed that police “took away a deaf and mute man”, a Bihari migrant and caretaker at the Chirag Ali Shah Baba dargah. 

“We do not even know who his family is,” said Ashfaq. 

Journalists Threatened

There is no longer a curfew in Banbhoolpura, but journalists alleged threats from police while doing their jobs and locals said they lived in fear of more police crackdowns and beatings.

Mohammad Nazim, 24, alleged that policemen beat him “while pretending to buy” glass panes at the shop where he worked. Aman, the son of Zahid Hussain, was also there with him at the time, according to Nazim, and both were beaten.

Aman corroborated Nazim’s story, but added that “this is secondary” compared to his father and brothers’ deaths". Nazim complained his back was badly bruised. “Even now I have difficulties lying down,” he said.

A few homes away, Bahar Ali, a frail 65-year-old owner of a makeshift kirana store, rushed out to allege to this reporter that he was beaten on 11 February by policemen who kicked in the door of his home-cum-store late into the afternoon. 

“I stepped outside when they kicked my door, and they then started beating me,” said Ali, who lives with his four children. “They hit me with a plastic stick and used the word “terrorist” when yelling at me. I was so scared.” Ali said, sighing that he regretted opening that door.

Local reporters alleged that police restricted their movements and threatened some of them.  On 23 Friday, Frontline magazine correspondent Ismat Ara tweeted that she was stopped three times in Banbhoolpura. “This included intimidation tactics, like demanding my press ID repeatedly, and constant attempts to pry into my investigation,” said Ara.

Writing in The Caravan Magazine’s Hindi edition, reporter Parijat (who goes by only his first name) said a constable in a posse of policemen stopped him while he was leaving Banbhoolpura on 10 February, abused him and asked, “Inn maa ke laudon ki reporting karega?” (You''' report about these motherf***kers?”  

When he told the policemen he was a reporter and produced his Aadhar card, the constable’s tone changed, wrote Parijat, particularly when he learned he was a Hindu. 

Around the same time, Scroll’s Ayush Tiwari, wrote that he was accosted by five policemen who demanded to see Aadhaar, voter identification and press cards. 

“It was only when one of them made a note of my upper-caste surname that I was let go”, wrote Tiwari, in Scroll’s newsletter to its subscribers. He noted what one of the patrolling officials said about local Muslims, “They (Muslims) will butcher you into small pieces if you go into those areas.” 

A freelancer, Umar Altaf, reporting for The Quint, shared with Article 14 his 10 February Instagram story, where he narrated how a “team of police with a senior inspector” came to his hotel room and checked his camera, laptop, and other belongings and took photographs of his identity cards. 

“While leaving, police told me that chaar din tak kuch bahar nahi aana chahiye” (nothing should come out for the next four days),” Altaf wrote. 

When visiting Banbhoolpura on 14 and 15 February, a local source told Article 14 to enter through one of the narrow back-lanes “away from the barricades and gaze of police”, not “carry a notebook or pen openly”, wear sneakers or running shoes, and be prepared to “run in case you’re caught”. 

S, a former software engineer and local activist involved with providing relief to locals, said his mother had lived in Haldwani for more than 40 years and sensed this time that “something” had fundamentally changed.

“She’s seen the 1984 anti-Sikh pogrom in Haldwani, the 1988 Kamla kaand or incident (when police shot three protesters demanding justice after the rape and murder of a Kumaoni girl) and now this,” said S.  “But never before has she seen this kind of a clampdown and fear.”

(Sabah Gurmat is an independent journalist and researcher based in New Delhi.)

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