An FIR has been registered against Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, following a complaint by a member of the Valmiki community (Dalit) over his remarks about a ‘purification (sudhikaran)’ event held at a Congress rally venue. The Police registered the case on Sunday, 30th August, revealing that Gandhi peddled fake news about the Havan ceremony and passed it off as a ‘casteist act.’
The complaint was filed by Amit Kumar, a member and office bearer of the Shri Ram Sena Dharmarth Seva Nyas, who said he personally participated in the cleaning and religious ritual at the venue. The complainant belongs to the Scheduled Caste community and said that Gandhi’s statements publicly portrayed him and other participants as practitioners of untouchability despite their own SC identity.
#WATCH | Haldwani, Uttarakhand: An FIR has been registered against Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi at Haldwani City Kotwali in Uttarakhand. The FIR has been lodged under Sections 196 and 299 of the BNSS, along with Section 3(1) of the SC/ST Act, 1989. The case was registered on the… pic.twitter.com/KgtrcVjQWV
— ANI (@ANI) August 30, 2026
FIR registered at Haldwani Police Station
OpIndia has accessed a copy of the FIR registered at Haldwani Police Station. According to the document, the FIR was registered on 30th August 2026.
The case has been registered under Section 3(1)(r)(u) read with Section 4 of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, along with Sections 196 and 299 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.
The subject of the complaint says it concerns casteist and derogatory statements made by Rahul Gandhi during a press conference in New Delhi on 29th August about the cleaning and religious ritual conducted at Ramlila Ground, Haldwani, on 11th August. The complaint says that the statements were based on “untrue and incomplete facts” and caused tension and enmity between communities.
What does the complaint against Rahul Gandhi say?
According to the FIR, Amit Kumar said the cleaning and Havan at the Ramlila Ground had nothing to do with the caste of any person. He said he and other members of the Scheduled Caste community were themselves involved in the activity.
The complaint states that the Ramlila Ground has traditionally been used for religious and cultural events and that its sanctity is important to the local community. A Congress political programme was held there on 8th August in the presence of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and other party leaders and workers.
Kumar revealed that after the programme, the ground and stage were found littered with garbage, empty liquor bottles and other objectionable material. He also referred to videos from the event that showed objectionable slogans being raised at the venue.
#WATCH | Haldwani, Uttarakhand: On the purification row, Vinod Arya, Member of Shri Ram Sena Dharmarth Seva Nyas, who performed the purification program, says, "… As a follower of the Sanatan tradition, it is my primary right and duty to ensure cleanliness at the venue where… https://t.co/r0FGxbdGoX pic.twitter.com/by9NCURZOI
— ANI (@ANI) August 30, 2026
Following this, the organisation cleaned the site and conducted a Havan on 11th August, according to the complaint. Kumar specifically highlighted that he, despite being from the Valmiki community, participated in the ritual.
The complaint says that Rahul Gandhi later described the ritual as an act of untouchability and a crime against Scheduled Castes. It says Gandhi demanded an FIR against those involved under the SC/ST Act without first verifying the circumstances behind the ritual.
Kumar further said that the statements were widely circulated through television and social media and resulted in him and other participants being portrayed as “casteist” and “anti-Dalit”. He also claimed that social and political pressure, along with threatening and abusive messages, followed the statements.
The complainant has therefore stated that Gandhi’s remarks amounted to public insult and intimidation and promoted enmity between groups.
Another Hindu activist Vinod Arya said, “I am a Dalit myself, and I was accompanied by other brothers from the Dalit community during this activity; we certainly weren’t doing anything untoward. Now, despite the fact that we are Dalits, the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, is calling for legal action and cases to be filed against us. We want an FIR registered against Rahul Gandhi; we intend to file a case against him, as we feel we are being unfairly pressured—with demands for our arrest—simply for our actions…””
How the Haldwani ‘purification’ controversy began
The FIR is linked to a controversy that started after a Congress rally was held at the Ramlila Ground in Haldwani on 8th August. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, who belongs to the Dalit community, attended the programme.
A Havan was conducted at the venue a few days later. Congress leaders alleged that the ritual was carried out to “purify” the stage because Kharge, a Dalit leader, had stood there. The party accused those involved of promoting untouchability and demanded action under the SC/ST Act.
Rahul Gandhi recently revived the issue and accused the BJP of having an anti-Dalit mindset. He claimed that the purification ritual amounted to untouchability against Kharge and the wider Dalit community and demanded that an FIR be registered against those responsible.
However, a Dalit man associated with the organisation that conducted the Havan has challenged this version of events.
Ankit Pal, who belongs to the Valmiki community and is associated with the Shri Ram Seva Dharmarth Nyas, said he participated in the cleaning and Havan at the venue. Speaking to the media, Pal rejected the allegation that the ritual was conducted because Kharge had visited the stage.
