YouTubers weaponizing food safety concerns to harass Muslim vendors at a sacred Hindu festival reveals how social media vigilantism threatens both religious harmony and honest working people’s livelihoods.
Story Snapshot
- Telugu YouTube channel confronted Muslim street vendors at major tribal festival, demanding ID and forcing them to eat their own products on camera
- Group invoked baseless “food jihad” conspiracy theory despite vendors selling traditional festival snacks for decades
- No police complaints filed, but vendors forced to flee festival and return home amid online harassment campaign
- Local villagers rallied to support harassed vendors financially, rejecting communal narrative pushed by YouTubers
Festival Vendors Targeted With Unfounded Accusations
Shaik Shaiksha Vali traveled from Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh to sell khova buns at the Medaram Jatara festival in Telangana’s Mulugu district, where millions gather biennially to honor tribal deities. The YouTube channel Tejaswi News confronted Vali and another vendor named Javed over ten days leading up to February 13, 2026, questioning their traditional sweet snacks’ quality and pricing. Channel anchor Balu Balaji Goud demanded Aadhaar cards, interrogated them about expiry dates on homemade products, and pressured them to consume their own food on camera to “prove” safety to assembled crowds.
Social Media Harassment Campaign Destroys Working Men’s Income
Tejaswi News released a 53-minute video on February 13 claiming festival attendees fell ill after eating the vendors’ buns, though no evidence supported these allegations and no police complaints were filed. The channel explicitly invoked “food jihad” conspiracy theories and made references to Rohingya refugees, framing Muslim vendors as threats deliberately adulterating food sold to Hindus. This coordinated harassment campaign went viral across social media platforms, forcing both Vali and Javed to abandon their businesses mid-festival and return home. The Vishva Hindu Parishad amplified the narrative, while the channel’s defenders claimed they were merely concerned about food safety despite the obvious religious targeting.
Pattern of Debunked Conspiracy Theories Continues
This incident follows a documented pattern of false “jihad” accusations against Muslims across multiple Indian states, from “thook jihad” (spit contamination) to “love jihad” conspiracy theories that have been repeatedly debunked. India Hate Lab reported 581 hate speeches in 2024 alone, with nearly half invoking similar baseless jihad conspiracies. Just one week before this harassment, an RSS-affiliated group in Hyderabad held a rally specifically targeting Muslims and Rohingya refugees. These vendors were selling khova buns—a traditional South Indian festival snack made from milk, sugar, and rava—at reasonable prices reflecting local ingredient costs and short shelf life, yet faced accusations of impossible adulteration schemes.
Community Response Rejects Divisive Narrative
Political leaders across party lines condemned the harassment and emphasized communal harmony, with even National Democratic Alliance allies backing the targeted vendors. Villagers in Kurnool rallied behind Vali and Javed, offering financial support to offset their losses from the disrupted festival sales. No arrests or formal actions have been taken against the YouTubers, and Mulugu district police confirmed no complaints were filed regarding either the alleged food safety issues or the harassment itself. The incident exposes how social media platforms enable vigilante tactics that destroy honest workers’ livelihoods while hiding behind manufactured safety concerns. When ordinary citizens must prove their food is safe by eating it on camera under crowd pressure, we’ve abandoned basic standards of decency and due process.
Sources:
Telugu YouTube channel targets Muslim vendors claiming ‘food jihad’
Viral video sparks outrage over harassment of Muslim vendor at tribal festival
NDA allies back Muslim vendor, blunt right-wing ‘food jihad’ campaign in AP
