ISLAMABAD: A water dispute in India's Uttarakhand state has exposed stark discriminatory practices in law enforcement, with authorities demolishing the homes of accused Muslims within hours while sparing the homes of upper-caste Hindus accused of torturing and killing a Dalit teenager.
On June 13, a clash erupted in Bairagiwala village in the Sahaspur area of Dehradun district over agricultural irrigation rights. The Times of India reported that a Hindu man, Ashok Kumar, attempted to irrigate his fields using water from a shared public borewell. According to police complaints, members of an adjacent family, led by a Muslim man, Imtiaz, objected. He said that the water diversion infringed on their irrigation rights.
The initial argument escalated into a physical scuffle that drew 30 to 40 armed people wielding batons, wooden planks, shovels, and hammers.
During the violence, Vinod Kumar Kashyap, a 44-year-old local ruling party official, was beaten to death with a hammer, according to The Times of India.
Unequal justice
Within 24 hours, the Dehradun district administration demolished the residential home of a Muslim man who was accused of murder. The local police bypassed the mandatory 15-day notice set by India's Supreme Court, according to Hindustan Times.
The response contrasts sharply with the June 8 killing of Ketan Lal, an 18-year-old Dalit youth in Tehri district. According to NewsClick, attackers used pliers to pull out his fingernails and toenails before he died.
Authorities did not demolish the homes of upper-caste accused individuals despite the crime's brutal nature. Police also delayed registering charges under atrocity protections for Ketan Lal's case, acting only after public protests, NewsClick reported.
Broader anti-Muslim campaign
The incident reflects escalating anti-Muslim sentiment across Uttarakhand under Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami's administration. State authorities have sealed five mosques in the Dehradun area, according to local Indian news outlets.
In June, officials sealed a mosque in Thano village that local residents said had existed since 1978 and received state funding, following protests by the right-wing Bajrang Dal organization.
Right-wing groups have increasingly monitored hotels, businesses, and resorts targeting interfaith couples under the guise of combating "Love Jihad," according to NewsClick. In April, a Muslim youth named Samir died after being targeted for eloping with a Hindu girl, the report stated.
In another incident, right-wing activists raided a footwear showroom, writing "jehadi" on nameplates of Muslim employees, as reported by several news outlets.
State officials have popularized terms like "Land Jihad" and "demographic change" to describe minority Muslim presence and activities, the Center for the Study of Organized Hate reported in February 2025. These narratives have provided the administration with what it claims are justifications to target the minority community.
Chief Minister Dhami declared the "jihadi and violent mindset attempting to disrupt the peace and social harmony of Uttarakhand would not be tolerated," according to The Times of India. Such language conflates an entire religious community with criminal actions.
Human rights advocates, including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International, warn that extra-judicial demolitions and discriminatory law enforcement undermine the rule of law and fuel communal division in the region.
