Video falsely claims illegal ‘mazar’ being constructed near Himachal Pradesh temple

Context

A video showing two women digging land on a hilly terrain is going viral with a claim that they were constructing an illegal mazar, which refers to a Muslim shrine or tomb. The videographer can be heard asking the two women, “Yeh tumhari jagah hai” (Is this your area?), while the women reply with a yes. 

Various users across social media platforms have shared the clip with the caption, “The video is said to be from Himachal Pradesh, an illegal Mazar is being built near temple premises. Outsiders can't even purchase/build homes in Himachal but building Mazar is allowed? (sic)” 

In Fact

We contacted Indian Forest Service Officer in Himachal Pradesh Yashu Deep Singh who refuted the claim and stated that the people in the video belonged to the Van Gujjar community, which holds grazing rights in the area. According to a 2021 article in Down to Earth, the Van Gujjars are a nomadic pastoral community with a predominantly Muslim population inhabiting hilly areas of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Kashmir. 

The community migrates to the grasslands at higher altitudes every summer to graze their cattle. They return to their makeshift tents only at the end of the monsoons. 

“They were preventing tourists from plying their vehicles over the grassland by digging a small trench,” Singh told Logically Facts.

The officer also shared an official press note stating that his office conducted an inquiry into the matter and also visited the site on June 12, and did not find any construction activity of any tomb or shrine being carried out. 

“The information claimed in the video is incorrect,” Singh told us.

We also spoke to Ranbir Singh, a journalist based in Himachal Pradesh, who said that the digging is clearly not a construction activity. “The Van Gujjars often make such pits while grazing their animals,” he stated.

The Gujjars pursue seasonal migration yearly, ensuring their pastoral livelihood remains viable. Their grazing rights have been secured under the Forest Rights Act 2006. Section 2(a) in the Act defines the community forest resource as a “customary common forest land within the traditional or customary boundaries of the village or seasonal use of landscape in the case of pastoral communities, including reserved forests, protected forests and protected areas such as Sanctuaries and National Parks to which the community had traditional access.”

The claim that outsiders cannot purchase or build homes in Himachal Pradesh is also false. Section 118 of the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Act does not put an absolute ban on the sale and purchase of land and property in the state. It limits the sale of land to individuals who are not residents of the state and do not engage in agriculture, even if they are residents. However, the section also provides conditions under which, with government approval, one can purchase both land and property within the state.

The Verdict

A forest official told Logically Facts that the video shows the Van Gujjar community members digging a small trench to prevent tourists from plying their vehicles on the grassland and not constructing a shrine or a mosque. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.