Hyderabad

A Muslim street vendor was allegedly harassed by a group of YouTubers during the recently held biennial mega tribal festival at Medaram in Telangana’s Mulugu, and was reportedly forced to eat his own food, officials said on Monday.

A video of the incident has gone viral on social media. It shows the group, said to be associated with a YouTube channel, questioning the vendor—who was selling kova (khoya) buns, a milk-based sweet—about the manufacturing date and quality of the food.

The vendor, a resident of Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool, is seen telling the group that he is merely a worker. The video further shows the men asking him to consume the food himself and demanding that he produce his Aadhaar card.

Police in Mulugu district said no formal complaint had been lodged in connection with the incident so far.

Another video circulating online shows residents of the vendor’s village standing in his support, stating that they have been consuming his kova buns for several years and vouching for their quality.

Reacting to the incident, Nara Lokesh, a minister in the Andhra Pradesh government, said such divisive and communal behaviour has no place in Telugu society.

In a post on X, Lokesh wrote, “Dear brother Vali, I am deeply sorry that you had to endure this. Such divisive and communal behaviour has no place in our Telugu society, which has always stood for harmony, mutual respect, and brotherhood. I will meet you soon and look forward to tasting your famous khoya bun. We stand together.”

Earlier, Asaduddin Owaisi, president of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, also condemned the incident.

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He demanded that Telangana Police register cases against those involved, asserting that acts of intimidation and communal targeting are unacceptable and must be dealt with firmly under the law.