A Kashmir presence at Delhi protests: A man who backs Modi

Faheem Nazir Shah is a 29-year-old electrician from Srinagar who has repeatedly demonstrated support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He first gained attention in 2021 after attempting to march nearly 800 km from Srinagar to Delhi to meet Modi. Police detained him in Udhampur, and he says the episode led his mother to disown him.

During an Opposition protest in Delhi, Faheem held a banner asking Rahul Gandhi to apologise to Modi and Amit Shah. He says he approached Gandhi to question his criticism of electronic voting machines and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Faheem says he was then assaulted while raising pro-Modi slogans. An FIR was registered the next day.

After returning to Jammu and Kashmir, Faheem received public support from BJP leaders, including Jitendra Singh and Ravinder Raina. He denies belonging to the BJP. He says he has received death threats online and is staying inside a relative’s home while seeking police protection.

Electronic voting machines, or EVMs, are devices used in Indian elections to record voters’ choices electronically instead of using paper ballots. They are designed to make voting and counting more efficient. The article mentions that EVMs were introduced by a Congress government in 1989, a point Faheem used during his argument with Rahul Gandhi.

The Chief Election Commissioner leads the Election Commission of India, the constitutional body responsible for supervising elections. The Commission manages the election schedule, voting process, counting, and related procedures. The CEC is its senior officer. In the article, Gyanesh Kumar is identified as the Chief Election Commissioner whose role became part of the Opposition protest.

Faheem challenged criticism of both EVMs and the CEC. He demanded evidence of irregularities and argued that Congress had used EVMs after their introduction. The article does not detail the specific allegations against the machines or the CEC, so those claims cannot be assessed from its facts alone.

Faheem’s most dramatic journey covered nearly 800 km. In August 2021, he set out from Srinagar for Delhi, hoping to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Police detained him in Udhampur before he could complete the march. That journey made him publicly known and became the foundation of his later political activism.

His support for Modi has appeared repeatedly in public. In 2021, he marched to meet the prime minister. In 2022, he held a banner criticising the Congress government in Punjab after Modi’s convoy was stranded during a farmers’ protest. This month, he again appeared in Delhi, raising pro-Modi slogans during an Opposition protest.

The article therefore documents public support from 2021 through the current episode, a period of about five years as the report frames it. Faheem still has not met Modi. He says his support comes from what he views as reduced bloodshed and improved peace in Kashmir.

Faheem said he approached Rahul Gandhi because Gandhi was speaking against electronic voting machines and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Faheem wanted to question what he called Gandhi’s rhetoric and ask how EVMs could be considered bad after Congress had introduced them in 1989. His challenge centred on consistency and evidence.

He also asked Gandhi to produce proof of irregularities in the electoral process. Faheem pointed to Congress’s later governments as part of his argument. In his view, a party that introduced EVMs and subsequently governed twice should explain why it now questioned them. The article presents this as Faheem’s reasoning, not as an independent finding about the machines.

The confrontation occurred during an Opposition protest in Delhi. Faheem held a banner asking Gandhi to apologise to Modi and Amit Shah, and he says he was assaulted after raising pro-Modi slogans. An FIR followed. The report does not establish whether Gandhi personally engaged with Faheem or whether his claims about irregularities were correct.

An alleged assault at a political protest can have both legal and personal consequences. Legally, police may record a First Information Report, investigate witnesses and evidence, identify suspects, and pursue charges if the evidence supports them. The accused remain entitled to due process. The article says an FIR was registered after Faheem’s complaint, but it does not report arrests or a final court outcome.

The alleged attack also produced political consequences. BJP leaders criticised Congress and publicly met Faheem after his return to Jammu and Kashmir. Ravinder Raina said he consoled Faheem, while the police were looking for the alleged assailants. These responses show how an incident at a protest can become part of a wider political dispute.

Personally, Faheem says he received death threats on social media after the assault. He says he has stayed inside a relative’s house since returning to Srinagar and plans to approach the Director General of Police for protection. Those claims describe his reported fear, not a confirmed finding about every threat.

The article presents Jammu and Kashmir’s political debate through competing claims about peace, violence, and loyalty. Faheem says Congress, the National Conference, and the Peoples Democratic Party failed to achieve what Modi’s government did. He credits the prime minister with reducing bloodshed and ending stone-pelting, while accusing the earlier parties of suppressing minorities and allowing innocent people to be killed.

Faheem links political loyalty to these claimed changes. He says young people turned toward books and computers and began seeking better prospects. His march, banners, and repeated public statements show how he expresses support for Modi outside formal party membership. He denies any association with the BJP, and a BJP spokesperson said the party learned about him through media reports.

The article records these claims but does not independently verify them or provide competing assessments from Congress, NC, or PDP. BJP leaders nevertheless welcomed or supported Faheem after the alleged assault. His experience shows how arguments over security, development, and past governments continue shaping political identities in Kashmir.

A democracy is meant to protect people who criticise leaders, support them, join political groups, or express unpopular views. These protections normally include freedom of speech, peaceful assembly, political association, and equal treatment under law. They do not make threats or violence acceptable. Protesters and public figures should be able to disagree without being attacked.

Election disputes should be handled through evidence-based procedures. A person can question voting technology, campaign conduct, or results by presenting specific claims to the relevant election authorities or courts. Those bodies can examine records, hear arguments, and issue decisions. Public debate may raise questions, but it cannot by itself establish that an election was irregular.

The article illustrates why these safeguards matter. Faheem says he approached Rahul Gandhi to demand evidence about EVM irregularities, then alleges he was assaulted. Police registered an FIR and began looking for suspects. The article does not describe a formal election challenge, so it cannot show whether any claim was legally tested or resolved.