Swami Darshan Bharti is a Hindu extremist monk from Uttrakhand known for orchestrating vicious campaigns against Muslims in the state. Under the banner of his organization, ‘Uttrakhand Raksha Abhiyan,” he aims at purging the state of Uttrakhand of the Muslim population as, according to him, the state is a ‘Devbhumi’ (God’s land) and belongs exclusively to the Hindus.

By instilling a sense of fear and insecurity among Hindus through constant fear and hate-mongering, he has built up the campaign to remove Muslims from the state.

According to The Wire report, in 2019, members of Bharti’s outfit, the Uttarakhand Raksha Abhiyan, had distributed 1.5 lakh booklets that encouraged Hindus to protest what they claimed were changes in the state’s demographics brought on by Muslims. Bharti spent a short time behind bars for inciting communal hatred against minorities after the incidents of looting and burning of shops belonging to the members of the minority community were connected to his Facebook remarks.

In April 2021, Bharti went on a hunger strike demanding stringent legislation against the bogey of ‘Love Jihad.’ He broke his fast after an assurance and promise from the then Chief Minister of Uttrakhand, Tirath Singh Rawat.

To get laws on the anti-Muslim conspiracy theories of “love jihad” and “land jihad” passed, he has been continuously meeting with successive Uttrakhand’s Chief Ministers.

At the infamous Haridwar Dharma Sansad ( Hindu Religious Parliament) in December 2021, where open calls for the genocide of Muslims were made, Bharti and others promoted the fallacy of a demographic shift occurring in Uttrakhand and spoke about how Muslims are infiltrating the “Devbhoomi.”

According to a report by The Wire, Bharti spoke about “Islamic activities in the Devbhoomi.” He said that even Aurangzeb had not managed to conquer the Devbhoomi and claimed that its people have not allowed any mosque to be built there since 2015.

“No mazar was allowed to be built. No madrasa was allowed to be built…Remember this too…Learn this from these poor…I wish to put to you people that only after saving that shrine of the Hindu religion can we talk of a Hindu nation…If India follows the path shown by Shankaracharya ji, then surely this saint will give you this knowledge,” he said.

On May 26, 2023, two youths, one Hindu and the other Muslim, were allegedly involved in the incident of an alleged abduction bid of a minor Hindu girl. An FIR was lodged against them under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, on the complaint of the girl’s family, and they were sent to jail the same day.

In May 2023, Bharti’s outfit gave a communal angle to an incident of interfaith relationship and announced the deadline for the Muslim minorities to evacuate the town. Posters were pasted, and shops and houses belonging to the Muslim community were cross marked in the Uttarkashi district of the state.

“I am meeting people across town and urging them not to give their houses and shops on rent to people from the Muslim community. Almost 50% of them agreed with me,” Bharti said.

Bharti has been propagating the conspiracy theory of ‘vyapar jihad’ ( business jihad) in the state and urging Hindus to adopt a complete economic boycott of Muslims.