'Dange Nahi Hone Doonga': How an MLA Took on Communal Escalation in Roorkee

Umesh Kumar, an Independent MLA from Khanpur, spoke out against communal polarisation in Roorkee.

Umesh Kumar is an Independent MLA from Khanpur.

(Photo: Vibhushita Singh/The Quint)

A possible communal flare-up was averted in Uttarakhand's Roorkee on Wednesday, 27 April, with the Haridwar district administration preventing the Mahapanchayat called by Hindutva outfits at Dada Jalalpur village. This is the same village where violence had taken place during a Hanuman Jayanti procession earlier this month.

Ahead of the Mahapanchayat, the district administration imposed Section 144, carried out heavy police deployment and placed organisers Anand Swaroop Maharaj and Sagar Sindhuraj under preventive detention.

The administration's urgency can be attributed to the Supreme Court's clear directive to the Uttarakhand Chief Secretary on Tuesday to give a commitment that there would be no "untoward situation" or "unacceptable statements."

An interesting role in the entire episode was played by journalist-turned-politician Umesh Kumar, who is an Independent MLA from Khanpur in Haridwar district.

'Won't Allow Riots, Politics Be Damned'

Kumar actively spoke out against attempts to vitiate the communal atmosphere in Roorkee and repeatedly called upon the police to take stern measures to prevent a flare-up.

On 26 April, a day before the planned Hindu Mahapanchayat, Kumar wrote on his Facebook page, "Don't lecture me on caste and religion. I won't let riots happen. Politics be damned. Whoever is guilty, from whichever community, should be sent to jail. Section 144 in some areas."

Umesh Kumar's post against riots

(Photo Courtesy: Umesh Kumar Facebook Page)

The interesting part is Kumar replied to several of the comments seemingly by locals.

In a number of comments, he countered rumours that people involved in violence have been let off.

Here are some of the other posts by Kumar on the communal flare-up.

On 25 April, he wrote: "My suggestion is that the Uttarakhand government should impose Section 144 in some areas to foil the conspiracy of inciting riots."

On 27 April, he urged the government to monitor Shobha Yatra and Eid prayers through drones and charge anyone from any community trying to incite violence under the National Security Act.

Photo Courtesy: Umesh Kumar Facebook Page

On 23 April, Kumar along with all the other non-Bharatiya Janata Party MLAs from Haridwar district met the DGP of Uttarakhand and submitted a memorandum urging the police to be unbiased in its approach and take strict action against any attempt to disrupt peace.

The other signatories to the memorandum include Congress MLAs Mamta Rakesh, Furqan Ahmed, Anupama Rawat, Ravi Bahadur and Virendra Kumar and BSP MLAs Sarwat Karim Ansari and Muhammad Shehzad. .

Letter by Haridwar district MLAs to the DGP

(Photo: Sourced by The Quint)

Response to 'Anti-Hindu' Charge

Following this memorandum and Kumar's comments against violence, he received allegations of being "anti-Hindu" from certain sections.

A few locals on social media accused Umesh Kumar of "taking Hindu votes but pandering to Muslims."

Kumar responded to some of these allegations through his Facebook account. On 27 April, he put up a picture of himself feeding a cow accompanied by the following text, "I don't need lectures from anyone on my faith and my duty. For my humanity and religion are supreme. For others, their faith may be supreme. Everyone should have freedom to follow their faith."

Kumar's response to 'anti-Hindu' charge

(Photo Courtesy: Umesh Kumar Facebook Page)

After the administration denied permission to the Mahapanchayat, Kumar said, "Where are the people who were calling me 'anti-Hindu?' Is the BJP government also anti-Hindu now that it has denied permission to the Mahapanchayat?"

On 28 April, he posted a video saying, "There is a cure for dog-bites, snake-bites and poisoned food. But there is no cure if someone poisons your mind."

Though Kumar played a positive role in preventing an escalation on 27 April, it is not clear whether he has helped those affected or allegedly displaced by the violence earlier this month.

Who Is Umesh Kumar?

Umesh Kumar has been a prominent journalist in Uttarakhand and is Editor-in-Chief of Samachar Plus 24x7. He has been behind several big political 'stings' in the state. These stings played a role in the downfall of the Harish Rawat-led Congress government and also the removal of former BJP CM Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank.'

Kumar, however, is said to have good relations with current CM Pushkar Dhami. He even offered to vacate the Khanpur seat for Dhami to contest after becoming CM for the second time despite losing his seat.

Kumar is also said to be close to senior BJP leader Anil Baluni as well as a few central and state-level Congress leaders. He is said to have been a critic of former BJP CM Trivendra Singh Rawat.

Earlier this month, he formed the Uttarakhand Janata Party whose main plank is clean governance. However, his election has been challenged in court as he had allegedly not declared the criminal cases against him while filing his nomination papers. The Supreme Court is expected to decide on the matter in early May.

Kumar is known to have spoken out on communalism on a few occasions. In response to the BJP's aim for a Uniform Civil Code, Kumar said, "People are struggling for jobs, healthcare and education. How would they know anything about Uniform Civil Code?"

He had also openly come out in support of cricketer Mohammed Shami when he faced communal trolling on social media in 2021. Interestingly, a few months later, Shami held a roadshow in Dhandera in support of Umesh Kumar.

Political Tussle in Khanpur

The attempts to communally polarise Haridwar district, especially Roorkee and adjoining areas, is not new. For the past few years, there has been an aggressive Hindutva campaign in the area alleging a demographic takeover by Muslims. This has intensified after Yati Narsinghanand's appointment as Mahamandaleshwar of the Juna Akhada, which has given him influence in Haridwar district.

One of the main protagonists of this Hindutva campaign is Swami Sagar Sindhuraj, known to be close to Yati Narsinghanand and Anand Swaroop Maharaj.

During last year's Dharam Sansad in Haridwar, Sindhuraj called upon Hindus to arm themselves and said that Muslims should be "killed and chased away like what happened in Myanmar."

A second case has been registered by the Uttarakhand Police in relation to the communal conclave held at Haridwar.

(Photo Courtesy: Maharishi Swami Sagar Sindhuraj/Facebook)

Sindhuraj was trying for a BJP ticket from Khanpur for the Uttarakhand Assembly elections earlier this year.

However, he was denied a ticket due to the clout of the then sitting MLA Pranav Singh Champion, a turncoat from the Congress. Sindhuraj and many others lobbied against a ticket for Champion, who also had a fair share of controversies.

Though Champion was dropped, he still managed to secure a ticket for his wife Devyani Singh.

However, Umesh Kumar emerged as a wild card in the elections, winning the seat with a narrow margin against his Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) rival. Champion's fortress was breached as Devyani Singh stood third.

Kumar received a great deal of support from both Hindu and Muslim voters in the elections. Many Muslims who traditionally voted for either Congress or BSP, shifted to Umesh Kumar.

However, with Champion licking his wounds and Kumar's election facing a legal challenge, Sindhuraj and other factions in the BJP are reasserting themselves in the area.

Many of them are hoping that Kumar's election gets cancelled and a fresh election is held. The calculation is that given the communal polarisation, it won't be easy for Umesh Kumar or a BSP or Congress candidate to win a repoll this year.