For Fahimuddin Ansari, the scent of freshly baked bread wasn’t just livelihood – it was legacy. Six decades ago, his father would cycle across Pune to sell pao, biscuits, and cakes. The Ansari family later put down roots in Paud village, in Pune’s scenic Mulshi taluka, and opened the New Sangam Bakery two decades ago. But for the past two months, the ovens have gone cold.

Ansari, 60, has allegedly been barred by locals from opening his bakery since early May, after a communal flare-up triggered by the desecration of a Hindu idol by a Muslim youth. He has submitted separate complaints to the police, the district administration, and even Pune’s Guardian Minister and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. But he has got what he claims have merely been “hollow assurances”.

Ansari’s ordeal mirrors that of dozens of other Muslim families in Paud, which has a population of around 3,000. At least 250 of the village’s 350 Muslim residents have allegedly been forced to leave in the last two months following instances of vandalism, threats, boycotts and pressure to shut down businesses, according to local Muslims who spoke to Newslaundry.  

All this after a 19-year-old Muslim youth was arrested on May 3 for desecrating the idol of Goddess Annapurna at Paud’s Nageshwara temple.

Most Muslims in Paud have been living there for decades and run small businesses – bakeries, scrap shops, salons and food stalls. Those who remain in the village say they stare at uncertainty amid alleged threats and state inaction.

Asked about the lack of police action despite at least 10 complaints submitted to the police in the last two months, Pune Rural SP Sandeep Singh Gill said, “This is a sensitive issue, and we are addressing it step by step. Initially, posters had come up in several villages of Mulshi taluka, stating that non-resident Muslims were not allowed to offer prayers at the mosque. After discussions with gram panchayat authorities, those posters were taken down. We are now planning to hold a meeting with the village elders and key stakeholders in Paud and we are committed to finding a solution to this issue as well.”

Before the alleged threats in Paud, posters calling for an economic boycott of Muslims had come up in a few other villages in Mulshi taluka. Some panchayats had earlier issued public notices banning “outsider” Muslims from offering prayers. 

 ‘Approached the sarpanch multiple times’

Fahimuddin Ansari had taken a Rs 5 lakh loan four months ago to renovate his bakery. He has zero income now, but has to pay Rs 14,000 a month in EMIs, and borrow even more to survive. 

“Two decades ago, we bought land and built our own bakery here so we didn’t have to travel every day. Everything was going well until suddenly, our businesses were shut down despite us doing nothing wrong,” claimed the 60-year-old. “It’s already been two months, how long are we supposed to wait? It’s getting difficult even to get the basics – food and medicines.”

“The boy who committed that heinous act at the temple should be punished in the strictest possible way…But why is the whole community being punished for one person’s crime? We have lived here peacefully with other villagers for decades. But now, overnight, we are being treated like outsiders and forced to shut down our livelihoods,” said Ansari. 

In June, Ansari went to the bakery to try to reopen it. “While I was sweeping the shop, three young men came and asked why I was there. They told me to shut the bakery and recorded a video before leaving. Later, my brother got a call from the sarpanch asking me to meet him. When I explained that goods worth Rs 2 lakh were inside and would get spoiled, the sarpanch told me, ‘Even if goods worth another Rs 2 lakh go bad, it does not matter. But if you open the bakery, it could lead to more trouble,” he alleged.

Paud sarpanch Baba Agne denied all the allegations and any knowledge of any such incident involving Ansari. “I have not heard anything about it. But if someone approaches me, I will do whatever is possible within the framework of the law,” Agne said.  

Muslim villagers, however, claimed they had approached the sarpanch multiple times. Newslaundry has seen copies of their complaints.

Similar complaints, impact on Hindu jobs

Rizwan Shaikh, 42, was in Uttar Pradesh for his daughter’s wedding when his New Bharat Bakery in Paud was allegedly forced to shut down on May 3. He also claimed that 18 of his 22 goats were stolen and his bakery vandalised while he was away. He filed a complaint with the police and the district collector but no action has been taken.

 Locals later told Shaikh he could reopen only if he hired workers from within the village. But even when he did, he claimed he was not allowed to reopen the shop.

“I used to earn around Rs 50,000 a month. But for the last two months, I haven’t earned anything. I had taken a loan of Rs 2.3 lakh for my daughter’s wedding, which I still have to repay. I had to ask my son and daughter, who were supposed to start Class 9 and Class 11 classes, to drop out and stay home. I couldn’t arrange their school fees or buy course books,” he claimed.

His wife Tarranum alleged she has to buy ration from another village as local shopkeepers are boycotting her family.

“I have lived in this village since I was 11. I grew up here. We were poor, and I used to cycle around the village selling pao and biscuits. Now suddenly, I’ve become an outsider. My Hindu friends still talk to me, but not in public. They say that since Muslims are being boycotted, they too will be boycotted if seen with us,” claimed Shaikh. 

The boycott of local Muslims has impacted a few Hindu workers too. For example, Gopal Bhartiya and Vinod Kumar, migrant workers from Prayagraj who used to work at Mohsin Shaikh’s Roshan Bakery in Paud.

Gopal Bhartiya, 32, said, “I had been working at the bakery for the last four years. Mohsin bhai looked after everything – our food, stay, and salary. But ever since the bakery was forcibly shut down, we’ve been out of work. It’s been two months now. Thankfully, even after losing his business, Mohsin bhai has supported us financially during this difficult time.”

Vinod Kumar, 25, said, “It’s really hard to find work these days. My entire family back in our village in Prayagraj depended on the income from this job. Now that it’s gone, we’re struggling.”

‘They checked identity card’

Sharafat Mansuri closed his bakery on May 3 after a mob stormed in, checked workers’ IDs, and threatened violence if Muslims didn’t leave. He claimed he fled the village with his family after the same group went to his bakery again on May 6. He sent his wife to his hometown in Uttar Pradesh while he is currently living at his relative’s place in Pune. 

The family is surviving by borrowing money from friends and family.   

“I have my house in Paud, but because of the threats, I have left the village with the entire family. I had to pull my three young daughters out of a primary school in Paud and had to leave the village. I don’t know when I will be able to return,” claimed Mansuri, who has filed a complaint before the police, district collector, and other authorities.

Meanwhile, scrap dealer Anwar Ansari’s godown was allegedly gutted in a fire days after tensions erupted, causing a loss of around Rs 20 lakh. He too has filed a complaint before the police and is now living at a relative’s house. 

“It wasn’t just a shop – it was my life’s work. And in one night, everything I built was reduced to ashes. I don’t know what to do, or where to turn for help. No one has come forward. I’m scared not just for my livelihood, but for my family’s safety. I’ve now moved to Kamshet to stay with a relative. We’re being targeted for no fault of ours. It feels like we don’t belong anywhere,” he alleged.

Naseer Ansari, who ran a salon for 18 years in Paud, now lives with his brother in Mumbai, jobless and lost. “I keep asking myself, what wrong did I do? Why am I being punished for something I had nothing to do with? Just because that one boy was Muslim, does that mean all Muslims in this country should be blamed for his actions?” he said. 

Naeem Ahmad Ansari, who sold bakery goods for 22 years, was forced out after threats to his life. He has moved to Bijnaur in Uttar Pradesh and is digging into his savings and borrowing money from relatives to survive.

“On May 4, some people came to my home and asked for my identity card. They told me to leave the village or else my life could get in danger. I left the village on the same day fearing an attack,” he claimed. 

Naseer and Naeem have not filed a complaint but their name features in complaints by Fahimuddin, Rizwan and Mohsin.

Simmering tensions

Newslaundry had earlier reported how Nere Dattawadi village near Paud had announced the economic boycott of non-local Muslims in a resolution termed as “a step for the protection of dharma”. Three other village panchayats put up public notices prohibiting “outsider” Muslims from praying at village mosques citing “security” concerns.

In Bhukum village, a gram sabha resolution subsequently formed a “Muslim community control committee” to track Muslim residents and businesses, bar property sales or rentals to Muslims, and prohibit mosques or dargahs.

Milind Champanerkar, an activist, claimed the “pattern” of targeting a community is “spreading to nearby villages”. “If authorities don’t act fast, it could spread across rural Pune and beyond.”

Reached for comment, Shankar Mandekar, the MLA from the Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction who represents the area, said that he was aware of the issue. “Members of the Muslim community met me a few days ago. I am  currently occupied with the assembly’s ongoing Monsoon Session, but I will definitely step in soon. I plan to bring together people from both communities and help resolve the matter through dialogue.”

Newslaundry has also reached out to NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule, as Mulshi taluka comes under her parliamentary constituency of Baramati. We also reached out to Ajit Pawar. Newslaundry reached out to district collector Jitendera Dudi multiple times. Their replies will be added to this report if they respond.

Azhar Tamboli, a social worker, claimed, “In rural Pune, a dangerous parallel power structure is targeting Muslims through economic boycotts and illegal resolutions. Villages like Bhukum have set up so-called Muslim control committees to block business and property dealings…Authorities have turned a blind eye. If this continues, we will go to court.”

Reports like these take time and resources. Help us tell more stories that are in public interest. Subscribe today.