A truck with a DJ blaring a patriotic Bollywood song from the 90s leads the motorcade. He follows a dusty, broken road in the Nuh Punhana subdivision, formerly known as Mewat. The song “Mera mulk, mera desh, mera ye vatan” (My country; my country; this, my motherland) echoes through the air, breaking decibel limits as the procession passes through the village. Behind the truck is a large white banner on a makeshift wagon with red lettering “Vande Bharat Ekta Yatra” accompanied by photographs of India’s first home minister, Sardar Patel, and local hero Raja Hasan Khan Mewati, who resisted the Mughal emperor Babur.
About 100 men, women and children, garlanded and waving the tricolor, walk behind the rath with faces full of enthusiasm. As the padyatra (walking procession) passes through a roadside settlement, a motorcyclist stops to inquire about the procession.
“Why from?” (What is it?) he asks in a Mewat accent. A man in the crowd immediately replies, “Bhaichara yatra hai” (It is a march of brotherhood). The biker nods in agreement, “Bhaichara toh acchi baat; bhaichara toh hona chahiye” (Brotherhood is a good thing; there should be brotherhood) before riding off.
The carefully crafted itinerary of the padyatra has been planned for 10 days, starting on November 27 at the historic village of Shahpur Nangli, where locals say people were hanged in 1857 for taking part in the first war of independence. She passed through a dozen Mewat villages, all associated with a history of casualties in the rebellion. Mewat RTI Manch convener Rajuddin Meo, media coordinator for the padyatra, says the march will cover more than 200 villages in Nuh and cover a distance of 150 km.
The convoy continues on its way. The atmosphere is electrifying with the sound of patriotic songs, chants and cheers filling the air as the procession makes its way through the dusty roads of Nuh.
As dusk approaches, the procession reaches Godhala village and stops briefly at several villages along the way, where crowds welcome the padyatris with open arms. As the sun begins to set, the convoy stops at a village and a large gathering forms on the side of the road. Mukesh Vashisth, the media coordinator of Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Saini, steps forward, microphone in hand, to begin his opening speech.
Political overtones
With a charming smile, he says, “Ittefaqan Mewat se pyaar ho gaya hai,” (I happened to fall in love with Mewat), his words instantly struck a chord with the audience. The crowd erupts into applause and Vashisth continues, his voice full of emotion: “You may think I have come to seek votes. But I have no such intention.”
Then he quickly makes a reference to Raja Hasan Khan Mewati, the Muslim Rajput ruler of Mewat, to keep the audience glued. “I belong to Faridabad and for the past few years I have been coming to Mewat on the orders of the Chief Minister. When I came here three years ago, I had an opportunity to attend a program on Raja Hasan Khan Mewati in college. I read about him. But I was surprised to find that a hero like Hasan Khan, who fought against his own Muslim brother Babar, is not much talked about in Me for his motherland.”
A few minutes into his speech – invoking Mewat’s culture, history of patriotism and tradition of Hindu-Muslim brotherhood – the speaker subtly changes track to talk about the region’s backwardness and seven decades of political “ungovernance”. As the teenage boy on the roof keeps showering him with rose petals, he says, “Mewati is so naive that he doesn’t wash his hands for three days if his MLA shakes hands with him. You show so much respect to your political leaders. But what have you gained in all these years?”
Reiterating that he is not here for votes, Vashisth emphasizes that he decided to trek 180 km on foot with his friends to wake up the people of Mewat. “I just want to make you think. You voted them into power for 70 years, but they destroyed your children’s future. Despite five education ministers from Mewat, it is still waiting for a university. Their children are studying abroad, but there is nowhere for your children to study,” he points out, as several people in the crowd murmured in agreement.
Hope for the Mewatis
Nasir Qureshi, 52, stands in the middle of a crowd near Hajipur Gohta village, garland in hand, eagerly waiting for the padyatra. He is not quite sure what to expect, but knows that his community’s demands will be presented to Chief Minister Nayab Saini at a rally during the culmination of the padyatra. “Yeh log hamari baat CM ke samne rakhenge. Bachcho ko acchi siksha mile. Yuva ko rojgar mile. Hum to yahi chahate hein,” says Qureshi, voicing the community’s hopes for quality education and job opportunities for their children and youth.
Standing next to him, 32-year-old Junaid explains that the purpose of the padyatra is to awaken the youth and get rid of the stigma of communal violence that rocked the region two years ago. Retired director Rafeeq Ahmed Alvi echoes this sentiment, saying the violence was orchestrated to damage Mewat’s reputation and isolate it from the mainstream, keeping it backward.
People participating in the 10-day Vande Sardar Ekta Yatra event in Nuh. | Photo credit: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA
Mustakim, a local youth, sums up the local mood, saying that people joined the padyatra with hope. He narrates instances where Vashisth has assured the community of government support: upgrading a high school to higher secondary level in Tirwara village and promising a Khel stadium in another village. “For the locals, he is the representative of the government. And they expect that their demands presented to him will be accepted,” says Mustakim.
Meo recalls the initial struggles of the padyatra: “On the first day, we started with about 150 people, but by the end of the day only 40 people remained. On the third day, when we marched towards the villages in the foothills of the Aravalis, starting from Malabh, only 20 people joined us.” He laughs, “We’ve had our ups and downs, but the numbers have grown as more and more people learn about the padyatra and its purpose.”
The organizing committee for the padyatra is headed by Jafruddin Bhagoria, who wrote to Deputy Commissioner Nuh on November 17, seeking necessary administrative support and arrangements for the smooth running of the event. The Deputy Commissioner has appointed Nuh City Municipality Nodal Officer for the overall coordination of all activities related to the padyatra.
Participation of women
Local youth icon Anjum Aslam, a 25-year-old Supreme Court lawyer, is proud to be a part of the padyatra. It highlights the significant participation of women in the march. “Women in Nuh usually avoid social and political events, but they came out in large numbers to be part of this procession,” says Aslam, her face beaming with pride.
She recalls a rally three days ago in which over a thousand women attended, showering flowers on the padyatris, preparing food, taking pictures and giving interviews to the media. “There is a growing awareness among women about their rights and education and it is wonderful to see,” adds Aslam, secretary, Vande Sardar Ekta Aayojan Samiti, organizing committee.
Another participant, Sabila Jung, who underpins the meaning of padyatra, says that even today, Mewat lacks basic infrastructure: there is no university, no railway line, no canal water. Besides, there are long-pending demands like extension of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway to Nuh near Marora and upgrading of Nagina to a subdivision, he says, adding that the padyatra has become a vehicle to bring these fundamental issues under discussion.
“social initiative”
In the afternoon, the padyatra stops outside the village for lunch organized by the panchayat. In an interaction with the media, Vashisth emphasizes that the padyatra is a social initiative and is completely apolitical.
“I was met by a group of young people who told me that there is a narrative that portrays Mewata negatively, saying that people here do not sing Vande Matram, wave the tricolor or sing the national anthem,” says Vashisth, pointing to the young men and women surrounding him, all members of the committee organizing the padyatra.
He mentions that they asked young people to fill out Google forms, they received 287 responses. “We didn’t accept support from the police. The administration offered, but we didn’t want to keep it in the shadow of the police,” he says. According to him, all arrangements for food, accommodation and overnight stay are made by the village or social activists.
Vashisth vehemently denies that the padyatra has any BJP agenda. He says his aim is to dispel myths and promote Mewat’s cultural and historical legacy. “Many industrialists, including Gurgaon Industrial Association president KK Gandhi, were also part of this yatra. It will help change the image of this region and also attract investment. Everyone is welcome in the yatra except those who support fanaticism,” he says, adding that the event was launched by Sarv Dharma Sabha.
Kudos to BJP
Minutes into the interview, Mukesh accuses the Congress and previous political parties of neglecting the region and credits the BJP government for promoting education and opening colleges. “Manohar Lal opened ITIs (Industrial Training Institutes) during his 10-year tenure as chief minister, but there are no jobs because there is no industry. Those who ruled for 70 years never thought about it. There were no colleges offering postgraduate courses before a few institutes were introduced during Manohar Lal’s rule,” says Vashisth.
He adds that during previous governments, the people of the region were treated as “political slaves”.
Addressing a nukkad Sabha (corner meeting), Vashisth appeals to the crowd to vote for the party and a candidate who gives them colleges and universities and talks about industry. “Don’t sell your votes to ladoos. Take care of your children’s future,” he declares.
Saffron agenda
The padyatra’s “social” label was met with skepticism by locals. Imran Khan, a trader from Pinangwan village, says, “It is a saffron political agenda wrapped in a social message.” He points out that the inclusion of images of Vande Mataram and Sardar Patel is a clear nod to the ideology of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the BJP, while the reference of Raja Hasan Khan Mewati is a calculated move to win over local Meo Muslims and boost the padyatra’s credibility.
Haryana Gau Sewa Aayog lone Muslim member Aas Mohammed, a former BJP block president, says the yatra initially faced resistance in some areas when locals threatened to pelt stones and did not allow her to enter villages, but the situation was brought under control.
Organizers of the padyatra had offered big-name participants, including Union Minister Manohar Lal and Chief Minister Nayab Saini, but both failed to turn up, fueling speculation of a tepid reception for the event. Some suggest that the organizers deliberately avoided a high-profile presence in order to play down the political undertones of the event.
Nuh, one of the 112 aspirational districts identified by the Niti Aayog, remains Haryana’s most backward – struggling in education, health, financial inclusion, agriculture and basic infrastructure. The district has over 90% Meo Muslim population and has been a Congress stronghold, with the party sweeping all three assembly constituencies in the 2024 polls. Meo Muslims also hold the key to Sohna and Hatin assembly constituencies in Gurugram and Palwal districts.
Attempts by the BJP to penetrate this stronghold were unsuccessful, with only a handful of prominent defectors including Zakir Hussain, Naseem Ahmed and Aizaz Ahmed joining the saffron camp. A history of lynching and communal violence has not helped the BJP cause in the region.
ashok.kumar@thehindu.co.in
