DEHRADUN: Six Kashmiri students sat outside the locked doors of Jolly Grant airport in Dehradun, under dim floodlights and the half-watch of two security guards in the quiet hours before dawn on Thursday. They had arrived around 3:30am, fleeing their hostel in panic after watching a video in which a man — calm-faced and deliberate — warned that all Kashmiri Muslims must leave Uttarakhand by 10am or face “treatment”. They waited until the terminal opened two hours later, sleepless and unsure of what, exactly, they were escaping.
The man in the video, Lalit Sharma of the Hindu Raksha Dal, issued a deadline with the cadence of a command. “We will start from Dehradun,” he said. “We won’t wait for the govt response… We have enough.” His message spread quickly, amplified by social media’s usual machinery, and reached hostels and WhatsApp groups. For Kashmiri students, already living in the uneasy shadow after the terror attack on tourists in Pahalgam, the threat felt immediate and personal.
One of the students, enrolled in a paramedic programme at a private institute in the city, said the sense of danger began earlier that day. “A faculty member came to our room in the afternoon. He said there was an input that some people might come looking for us on Thursday.” The suggestion was to move to a ‘safe house’ temporarily. But as the hours passed, and the video circulated more widely, fear eclipsed caution. The students called the college CEO, booked flights, and hired a taxi to the airport. They did not even stop to pack thoroughly.
By Thursday afternoon, nearly 20 more Kashmiri students had arrived at the airport, most of them having arranged their own departures. “Our exams were over anyway,” the student said. “Summer vacation is starting. We are not coming back anytime soon.” None of them wanted to be named, fearing that even anonymity might not shield them in a city suddenly turned uncertain.
This wasn’t the first time Kashmiri students in Dehradun had felt exposed, but this time the danger had a face, a name, and a ticking deadline. And unlike rumours or anonymous threats, this one came wrapped in video clarity — a man looking directly at them, telling them they did not belong.
Others, like a Kashmiri man working at an educational institute in the city, chose to stay, but not without hesitation. “We’re here for work, to earn a living,” he said. “But when these things happen, people don’t see you as a teacher or a student. They see ‘Kashmiri’ and make assumptions. One of the victims in the Pahalgam attack was a Kashmiri who fought back against the terrorists. But no one mentions that.”
On Thursday, Dehradun police registered a case against Sharma under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita covering hate speech, public provocation, and communal enmity. “The video falls within the definition of hate speech,” SSP Ajai Singh told TOI. He added that police had also removed over 25 inflammatory social media posts and warned those responsible.
The broader police response includes outreach to nearly 1,200 Kashmiri students in the city. “We’re assuring them that their safety is our duty, regardless of their religion or the place they belong to,” Singh said. Forces have been posted outside educational institutions, and meetings with management are ongoing.
Meanwhile, the Jammu & Kashmir Students Association (JKSA) shared the helpline numbers to provide assistance to any student from the valley in case he faces any issue amid the tension.
"The students can contact on 7303620090, 9682389265, 9419158581, (011)24611108, 24615475, 24611157, 26112021 and 26112022 in case of any emergency. The association is constantly monitoring the situation to assist the students in need across country," said Nasir Khuehami, national convenor of JKSA.
The man in the video, Lalit Sharma of the Hindu Raksha Dal, issued a deadline with the cadence of a command. “We will start from Dehradun,” he said. “We won’t wait for the govt response… We have enough.” His message spread quickly, amplified by social media’s usual machinery, and reached hostels and WhatsApp groups. For Kashmiri students, already living in the uneasy shadow after the terror attack on tourists in Pahalgam, the threat felt immediate and personal.
One of the students, enrolled in a paramedic programme at a private institute in the city, said the sense of danger began earlier that day. “A faculty member came to our room in the afternoon. He said there was an input that some people might come looking for us on Thursday.” The suggestion was to move to a ‘safe house’ temporarily. But as the hours passed, and the video circulated more widely, fear eclipsed caution. The students called the college CEO, booked flights, and hired a taxi to the airport. They did not even stop to pack thoroughly.
By Thursday afternoon, nearly 20 more Kashmiri students had arrived at the airport, most of them having arranged their own departures. “Our exams were over anyway,” the student said. “Summer vacation is starting. We are not coming back anytime soon.” None of them wanted to be named, fearing that even anonymity might not shield them in a city suddenly turned uncertain.
This wasn’t the first time Kashmiri students in Dehradun had felt exposed, but this time the danger had a face, a name, and a ticking deadline. And unlike rumours or anonymous threats, this one came wrapped in video clarity — a man looking directly at them, telling them they did not belong.
Others, like a Kashmiri man working at an educational institute in the city, chose to stay, but not without hesitation. “We’re here for work, to earn a living,” he said. “But when these things happen, people don’t see you as a teacher or a student. They see ‘Kashmiri’ and make assumptions. One of the victims in the Pahalgam attack was a Kashmiri who fought back against the terrorists. But no one mentions that.”
On Thursday, Dehradun police registered a case against Sharma under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita covering hate speech, public provocation, and communal enmity. “The video falls within the definition of hate speech,” SSP Ajai Singh told TOI. He added that police had also removed over 25 inflammatory social media posts and warned those responsible.
The broader police response includes outreach to nearly 1,200 Kashmiri students in the city. “We’re assuring them that their safety is our duty, regardless of their religion or the place they belong to,” Singh said. Forces have been posted outside educational institutions, and meetings with management are ongoing.
Meanwhile, the Jammu & Kashmir Students Association (JKSA) shared the helpline numbers to provide assistance to any student from the valley in case he faces any issue amid the tension.
"The students can contact on 7303620090, 9682389265, 9419158581, (011)24611108, 24615475, 24611157, 26112021 and 26112022 in case of any emergency. The association is constantly monitoring the situation to assist the students in need across country," said Nasir Khuehami, national convenor of JKSA.
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