A Kashmiri vendor was manhandled during the ongoing International Gita Festival in Kurukshetra, a city in the state of Haryana, India. According to Kashmir Media Service, The incident has drawn widespread condemnation after footage of the event went viral on social media. The vendor from Srinagar was assaulted by a group of men carrying saffron flags as they moved through the stalls at the Craft Mela, a central attraction of the International Gita Jayanti Mahotsav-2024 held near the Brahmasarovar.

The Mela features stalls from artisans across India, organized under the supervision of local authorities. The viral video shows a group of men chanting slogans as they enter the vendor's stall. One of them is seen manhandling the vendor while others throw his items to the ground. In his police complaint, the vendor said, “A group of 30 to 40 men came and started shouting slogans. They thrashed me with sticks, threw my items, and made announcements urging people not to buy products from Muslims.”

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)