History of Muslims in Uttarakhand dates back 800 Years: Islam Hussain

History of Muslims in Uttarakhand dates back 800 Years: Islam Hussain

Mohammad Deepak and Vijay Rawat honored at Uttarakhand Insaniyat Manch 4^th Annual Conference:

Dehradun, May 24

While it is true that today—at the behest of those in power and their associates—Muslims in Uttarakhand are being labeled as oppressors and subjected to malicious propaganda branding them as “Jihadis,” the reality is that Muslims have been an integral part of this region for the past 800 years. The ‘mazars’ (shrines) that are currently being linked to the narrative of “Land Jihad” and being bulldozed as illegal are, in fact, the shrines of Sufi sages; Sufi saints who were historically been revered across all religious communities in this region.

These facts were asserted by Islam Hussain, a renowned historian of the region and President of the Uttarakhand Sarvodaya Mandal. He was speaking as a special guest on the occasion of the fourth annual conference of the Uttarakhand Insaniyat Manch. During this conference, Deepak Kumar and Vijay Rawat  who had set a shining example of humanity and brotherhood in Kotdwar while saving an old Muslim shopkeepers were also honoured.

Islam Hussain in his address noted that Muslims arrived in Uttarakhand in various periods. Most were invited by the local kings, who recognized their skills and settled them here with dignity. The ‘Van Gujjars’ , for instance, were presented by the King of Sirmaur to the Prince of Garhwal as part of his daughter’s dowry. These Gujjars had originally been given to Sirmaur by the King of Kashmir, also as part of a dowry settlement. Thus, across different historical happenings, Muslims continued to arrive here and eventually became an inseparable part of this land. The ‘Rohilla Pathans’ played a pivotal role in expelling the Gurkhas from Uttarakhand. A Muslim population has resided throughout the entire Himalayan region—stretching from Kashmir to Uttarakhand—for hundreds of years.

Addressing the recently much-discussed issue of “Mazar Jihad,” he stated that, in the era of ‘Akhand Bharat’ (undivided India), Sufi saints traveled from Afghanistan to Uttarakhand via forest routes. They were highly respected within the local society, primarily renowned for their ability to cure ailments. These ‘mazars’ were constructed to honour those very sages. To this day, ‘Sayyadi Jagars’ (ritualistic folk performances) are performed in various parts of Uttarakhand in their honor. These ‘Jagars’ contain references to the Holy Quran as well as to numerous ‘Pirs’ and ‘Faqirs’ (Sufi ascetics). He expressed his surprise and dismay at the vilification of the Muslim community in Uttarakhand.

Meanwhile, Deepak Kumar and Vijay Rawat, who both, set a shining example of humanity and brotherhood in Kotdwar by saving an old Muslim shopkeeper on January 26, 2026 were also felicitated. Deepak Rawat observed that a section of the youth has strayed from the right path and is spreading hatred. He suggested that senior citizens should reach out to the parents of such youths and endeavor to guide them back onto the correct path. Vijay Rawat remarked that while no action was taken against those who attempted to incite riots in Kotdwar, legal cases were, ironically, registered against Deepak and himself.

During the conference, Jaya Singh of CFGD, Advocate Snigdha Tiwari, Yashveer Arya of Sarvodaya Mandal, litterateur Samdarshi Bartwal, Vijay Bhatt of Jan Vigyan, Shaman Gupta of the transgender community, and Advocate Rizwan Ali shared their views and offered suggestions to the ‘Insaniyat Manch’ (Forum for Humanity) regarding its future programs.

Dr. Ravi Chopra delivered the welcome address, and Kamala Pant presided over the event. Hariom Pali served as the master of ceremonies. Satish Dhaulakhandi, Trilochan Bhatt, Dharmanand Lakheda, Mamta Rao, and Uma Bhatt performed folk songs.

Hundreds of people were present on this occasion, including Nirmala Bisht, Padma Gupta, R.P. Vishal, Vimla Koli, Nand Nandan Pandey, Tushar Rawat, Chandrakala, Manju Balodi, Vijay Naithani, Rajesh Saklani, Jagmohan Mehndiratta, Dr. Jitendra Bharti, Sujata Paul, Mukesh Bahuguna, Rakesh Agarwal, Prem Singh Danu, Raju Singh, Jagdish Kukreti, Manzoor Beg, Biju Negi, Ishwar Pal Singh, Samar Bhandari, Puran Bartwal, Deepa Kaushalam, V.K. Dobhal, Prof. Raghavendra, Paramjit Singh Kakkar, Vibhapuri Das, S.S. Pangti, Harjinder Singh, Harvir Kushwaha, Rakesh Pant, Tarvinder Kaur, Samina Malik, Geetika, Sudhanshu Rawat, Robin Tyagi, and Vineet Prasad Bhatt.