Read on blog or Reader Alt News Read on blog or Reader Monk confronted over ‘harassment’ of girls in Rishikesh not a Muslim in disguise By Abhishek Kumar on 14th July 2026 A video has gone viral on social media showing a group of young girls confronting a man dressed in saffron robes. In the video, the girls accuse him of telling them that if they crossed to the other side of the river ("palli paar"), he would give them ₹1,200 and a bicycle. Shortly after, a few young men standing nearby begin slapping the saffron-clad man. Sharing the clip, several social media users claimed that the man, who was allegedly posing as a Hindu sadhu near Ganga Resort, was actually a Muslim maulana attempting to lure young girls. An X user, Varaha Warrior, shared the video claiming that the man roaming near Ganga Resort disguised as a Hindu sadhu was actually a Muslim maulana trying to get close to young girls and children. (Archive) X user Rakesh Kishore shared the same clip and wrote, "This 'jihadi' turned out to be a Muslim posing as a Hindu sadhu near Ganga Resort and trying to approach young girls. A brave Hindu girl confronted him fearlessly and questioned him. Soon, local residents arrived, caught him red-handed and thrashed him." (Archive) Another account, Oxomiya Jiyori, also shared the video with the identical claim. (Archive) Fact check To verify the claim, we first attempted to establish the location of the incident. Since the viral posts mentioned only "Ganga Resort" without specifying the exact location, we searched for it on Google Maps. We found a resort by that name in Rishikesh, and its surroundings matched the background visible in the viral video. We then performed a reverse image search using key frames from the clip and found that it had been uploaded on Instagram on July 4 by Rishikesh-based content creator Raj Rai. The video has since garnered over 23 million views. Notably, the caption made no mention of the accused being a Muslim. We contacted Raj Rai using the phone number listed on his Instagram account. He told us that the incident had taken place around seven to eight days earlier. While passing by Ganga Resort, he saw the girls arguing with the saffron-clad man and recorded the altercation. He added that the accused was later handed over to the Muni Ki Reti police station. When asked about the viral claims regarding the man's religious identity, Rai categorically stated that the man was not a Muslim. To gather further details, we contacted the Muni Ki Reti police station in Rishikesh. Senior sub-inspector Yogesh Pandey shared a detailed account of the case. Speaking about the accused's identity, Pandey said, "The incident likely took place around July 4. The accused is Rameshanand, originally from Bihar, but he has been living in the Rishikesh since 1997. We verified his Aadhaar card, which lists his address as Harihar Kailash Ashram Gyanpeeth, Kailash Marg, Muni Ki Reti. Claims circulating on social media that he is a Muslim are completely false. He is a Hindu." Addressing the allegations made by the girls, SSI Pandey further said, "These girls sell flowers at the ghats. Our investigation revealed that Rameshanand had previously given clothes and other small items to several children. On the day of the incident as well, he told some children selling flowers there, 'Come, I'll take you across and get you things like clothes or bicycles.' Some people present misunderstood his remarks and assumed that the baba was trying to take the children somewhere with malicious intent. When one of the girls started speaking, someone began recording the video, but the conversation that followed was not captured. As a result, a false narrative emerged." Explaining the police action, the officer said, "We called Rameshanand Baba to the police station for questioning. Locals also confirmed his good reputation. We checked his criminal record on the ICJS portal but found no criminal cases registered against him anywhere in India. On the contrary, it was the people present there who assaulted him." He added, "We traced the girls and contacted their families. We requested them to file a written complaint if any harassment or misconduct had taken place so that we could initiate legal action. However, the family categorically refused. They submitted a written statement saying that no harassment or molestation had occurred and that they did not wish to pursue any legal action. We also facilitated a face-to-face conversation between Baba and the girls, after which the matter became clear." Thus, a video showing young girls questioning a Hindu sadhu has been falsely given a communal angle on social media. The man seen in the video is not a Muslim maulana. He has been identified by the police as Rameshanand, a Hindu sadhu who has been living in Rishikesh for many years.

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