“I am not a Hindu, I am not a Muslim, I am not a Sikh, and I am not a Christian. First and foremost, I am a human being. Because after I die, I have to answer to God and to humanity, not to any religion,” gym owner Deepak Kumar, 46, in Uttarakhand‘s Kotdwar said in a video on Instagram. He was responding to threats he’s been facing for these ideas ever since he protected a Muslim shopkeeper from harassment by a group of men claiming to be from Hindutva outfit Bajrang Dal.
A mob gathered at his home on Saturday, and police had to intervene. Deepak then put out videos showing the confrontation, and shared his secular idea of India as well. “I will not back down,” he has told news outlets.
The turn of events stems from Deepak’s confrontation with Hindutva group members, during which he said, “My name is Mohammad Deepak!” — a sentence meant to fuse his Hindu identity with that of fellow Muslims to convey his idea of India, he later said.
The phrase is viral across social media platforms, but has also brought danger to his door. Deepak was seen confronting the mob, while police pushed them apart.
“I just want to say this to all of you—to my brothers, sisters, and friends—that our country needs love and affection, not hatred. You can spread as much hatred as you want; there is no stopping that. But spreading love is a very big thing,” he said in a video later.
Stood up against communal bullying
Deepak was at a friend’s shop on January 26 when he saw a mob threatening a 70-year-old Muslim shopkeeper, Wakeel Ahmed.
The mob said Ahmed must drop the word ‘baba’ from the name of his shop, ‘Baba School Dress’. Baba is usually used for old or religious men, and the men bullying Ahmed insisted this could only be used for Hindu religious men.
A video gone viral since shows Deepak confronting the mob and asking why others could use ‘baba’ but not Ahmed. “The shop is 30 years old; will you change the name?” he is seen asking them.
When a man from the group asks him what his name is, seeking expressly to know his identity, Deepak Kumar replies, “My name is Mohammad Deepak.”
“I intended to convey that I was an Indian and everyone is equal before the law,” Deepak told The Indian Express, recounting the incident.
Deepak Kumar has since been abused by rightwing handles across X, Instagram and Facebook, with his public profile on Insta flooded with comments. These include gratitude from Muslims and other people backing his ideas, while Hindutva-aligned social media users calls him a “traitor” and other, worse names.
What Muslim shopkeeper, police said
The police have lodged two FIRs in connection with the incident.
SSP Sarvesh Panwar said a local shopkeeper named Wakeel Ahmed approached them alleging that he was threatened by individuals claiming to be members of the Bajrang Dal, who demanded that he change the name of his shop.
“We have registered an FIR following a written complaint by the victim,” he said.
In his complaint, Ahmed said he has been operating his shop, ‘Baba School Dress’, on Patel Marg for the past three decades. According to the complaint, the incident occurred on January 26, 2026, when three-four young men entered his shop. They allegedly identified themselves as Bajrang Dal members and issued a stern ultimatum to change the shop’s name or face “dire consequences”. They allegedly intimidated and threatened him, saying the result would not be good if the name ‘Baba’ was not removed, Ahmed stated in his complaint.
Ahmed identified two of the alleged harassers as Gaurav Kashyap and Shakti Singh Gonsai.
Panwar said that based on the complaint, the Kotdwar Police Station has booked the two named individuals and their unidentified associates under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Section 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), Section 333 (house trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restraint), and Sections 351(2) and 352 (criminal intimidation and intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace).
Deepak faced threats as new, larger mob gathered
The SSP said the police registered a separate FIR against 30 to 40 unidentified individuals, alleged to be members of a right-wing organisation, for inciting communal disharmony, obstructing a national highway and manhandling police personnel in Kotdwar on Saturday.
The mob even reached the Patel Marg market, where they continued shouting provocative slogans outside the garment shop, further escalating communal tension.
“Most of the accused are believed to have travelled from Dehradun and Haridwar,” the SSP said.
The situation escalated further on Saturday when a large group of Bajrang Dal workers staged a protest outside Deepak Kumar’s gym in the presence of police, demanding that he come outside.
In a video recorded during the protest, the workers were heard saying, “The man who calls himself ‘Mohammad Deepak’ has now shut his gym and fled… If he has the courage, he should come outside. He chased away unarmed Bajrang Dal workers. We are now standing in his city, yet he has run away. If he loves Muslims, then he should wear a skull cap and become a Muslim.”
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