Overview
- A peaceful public reading of I Am Malala and other books at Vastrapur Garden was confronted by a group claiming affiliation with the Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad, and the encounter turned into a scuffle in which two participants were injured.
- Police registered a first information report for rioting, unlawful assembly and causing hurt under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and arrested three people in connection with the episode.
- Investigators said they have identified several suspects from CCTV footage and witness statements and that further arrests or charges may follow as inquiries continue.
- The reading was organised as a protest against Anand Niketan School’s decision to make I Am Malala and The Diary of a Young Girl optional after earlier right-wing objections and an education department fine.
- The episode highlights how local disputes over school reading lists have become flashpoints for ideological policing by Hindutva-affiliated groups and raises questions about safety for public acts of reading and protest.