BJP workers halt burial over disputed 'waqf land' in Uttarakhand

A decades-old land dispute between Hindu and Muslim communities resurfaced on Thursday, May 29, in the Gaujani area of Ramnagar, Nainital, after a Muslim family began digging a grave on land allegedly outside the designated cemetery.

The move sparked immediate objections from local Hindu residents and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers, prompting a tense standoff. BJP leader Madan Joshi claimed the burial site was around 200 metres from the approved cemetery boundary. “This land is not part of the authorised cemetery,” he told ETV Bharat.

The sub-divisional magistrate, Pramod Kumar, rushed to the site with a heavy police presence to defuse the situation. “The administration intervened and held talks with both sides. No action will be allowed without official permission,” he said.

On May 29, in Goujani, Ramnagar, Nainital, Uttarakhand, BJP leader Madan Joshi led a group of people to prevent the burial of a Muslim man’s body. While the Muslim community asserted that the land was part of their graveyard, Joshi claimed it was not and objected to the burial pic.twitter.com/xDQexuoMt5

— Mohd Shahnawaz Hussain (@Mohd_S_Hussain) May 29, 2025

The standoff escalated when a group of Muslim youths sat inside the dug pit, insisting the burial be allowed at the disputed location. Police eventually removed them, and the administration directed the family to conduct the burial at the approved cemetery. The grave near the Hindu residential area was subsequently filled in.

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The Dainik Jagran reported that the land has been under dispute since 1994, with both communities earlier agreeing to conduct burials only at the designated site. Joshi further alleged that the issue is being “unnecessarily amplified” by the Waqf Board and claimed the land originally belonged to a Hindu family with no surviving heirs.

To maintain law and order, authorities have deployed police and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), while revenue officials are reviewing land records to demarcate the cemetery boundary.

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