Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, in a statement on May 22, 2022, had expressed concern over the illegal Mazars being built in the mountains. He had announced action against the Mazars mushrooming everywhere calling them encroachments. He also described the demographic change taking place in Uttarakhand as a matter of concern while informing about a drive to identify illegal infiltrators and Rohingyas in the state.
A few days ago, Hindu organizations created a ruckus at the Mazar next to Kailash Hospital in the posh area of Dehradun. Activists of the Hindu organization alleged that one of the accused, who sold eggs in the street, gradually gathered the entire community near Mazar. The police had to intervene in the case and the alleged servant of the Mazar, originally a resident of Sambhal in Uttar Pradesh, had to leave the place. Later, the encroachments accumulated there were also removed. However, according to the police, the Mazar is still present in the same place.
There was not a single mosque in Uttarakhand before 1985: Swami Darshan Bharati
Swami Darshan Bharti, a veteran saint working against illegal Mazars and drug addicts, gave some special information while talking to OpIndia about the condition before and now. He said, “Till 1985, there was not a single mosque in Uttarakhand. Here, Muslims are called Maniharis who sell women’s beauty articles. In Almora, a local goldsmith had allowed the first mosque to be built by the Maniharis with compassion. He didn’t know that after that there would be a flood of mosques here. The family members of the goldsmith who showed mercy still live in Dehradun. It would be not fair to mention his name.”
The same claim has been made by Voice for India founder and American activist Renee Linen and some others.
उत्तराखंड में पहली मस्जिद 1985 में अल्मोड़ा में बनी जो बहुत ही छोटी सी थी….केवल 36 साल में 1700 मस्जिद हो गयी हैं, देवभूमि हिमालय को कैसे बचाना है, यह समस्त हिन्दू समाज को सोचना होगा…#हिमालय_हमारा_देवालय_है
— Renee Lynn (@Voice_For_India) September 3, 2021
The first Muslim family was settled by King Katyur in the 13th century
According to Swami Darshan Bharati, “Almora was long ago ruled by the King Katyur. He then called some Muslims from Rampur to get some of his work done. Their families were given a place somewhere in the corner to live. Gradually, the population of Muslims has increased and today many areas have been created where, if you visit, you won’t feel like Uttarakhand. That place will seem like Deoband. Until 1985, these Muslims never talked about the mosque. But now there is fundamentalism. Today they need a mosque first.”
Great sin committed by ND Tiwari’s government
Swami Darshan Bharati told OpIndia that the biggest boost to Muslims in Uttarakhand was in the Congress government led by ND Tiwari. He said, “There has been a great sin in the ND Tiwari government. Under his government, the largest mosque in Uttarakhand was built on top of the temple of Naina Devi in Nainital. The mosque has been built on the road by completely encroaching upon it. The temple has also started to look small as compared to the mosque.”
He further said, “It was ill-fate of Uttarakhand, the origin of the Hindus, the first full-term government that came after the formation of the state, was that of Narayan Dutt Tiwari. We thought that this region would give the message of Hinduism to the world, but now there is a crisis of existence here. Most of the mosques built in Uttarakhand date back to the time of Narayan Dutt Tiwari. Mosques were also built in Srinagar, Pauri, Dugadda, and Kotdwar. A mosque has also been built at Dharchula, which falls on the border. In the Congress government, Muslim leaders were made Minister of State.”
Some people have also made videos of the mosque at Nainital.
In February 2022, a video of Congress leader and ND Tiwari’s aide Matabar Singh Kandari had also gone viral with a promise to give land for the mosque in Rudraprayag.
No new mosque built in the last 7 years
Swami Darshan Bharati claimed that no new mosque has been allowed to come up in Uttarakhand for the last seven years. He said, “No one will dare to make one now. We are taking action on the Mazars that have been built. Two Mazars have been constructed on the Dehradun-Mussoorie road. They also have to move away. We have stopped the construction of mosques at Joshimath and Karnaprayag. Now the citizens of Uttarakhand are becoming aware of religion. Hindus here had no idea what was happening here.”
About 2,000 illegal Mazars are built on government lands
Swami Darshan Bharati said, “Today, there are about 2000 illegal Mazars across Uttarakhand. These Mazars are occupying all the government land. The Mazars have been built on lands like irrigation department, forest department, PWD, etc. 60 to 70 percent of the government lands of Dehradun Municipal Corporation and Zila Panchayat are occupied by Muslims. Several thousand hectares of land in Azad Nagar Colony of Dehradun are under the illegal occupation of Muslims. Today, several-story high-rise mosques have come upon the lands of the Rispana river and drain passing through Rajiv Nagar in Dehradun. Apart from this, many madrasas have also been built. Today, this area seems to be Muslim-dominated. Today, the Muslims have reached Joshimath. If this is the case, then in the next 4-5 years, the culture of Devbhoomi will end.”
On social media too, many people have shared videos of illegal Mazars being built in different parts of Uttarakhand.
A video of a Mazar in Manila Salt in Almora has also been shared. It is present near the Manila Devi temple.
