Popular folk singer Aditya Gadhvi has issued a clarification hours after 'non-Hindus' were asked to leave his garba event in Ahmedabad, saying "it was not my message".
The singer, best known for the Coke Studio India song Khalasi, shared a lengthy note on Instagram distancing himself from the controversy raging on social media.
In a video from the garba night, going viral on the Internet, the emcee Akash Trivedi is seen calling out to the "non-Hindus and Muslims" who may be part of the audience to leave the venue that played host to Aditya Gadhvi's event.
The singer shared a statement on social media responding to the backlash.
"What happened at the event was not my doing, and it was not my message... Garba has never asked anyone for their surname. For generations, people of every faith in Gujarat and across India have played garba side by side, and that is what makes it ours... That is not politics. That is just how I was raised," he wrote.
At the event, RJ Akash Trivedi made an announcement: "A humble request to any 'vidharmi' (non-Hindus) and Muslims to leave the ground. The Vishva Hindu Parishad has come here to protect Sanatan Dharma".
રંગ મોરલા નવરાત્રિમાં મુસ્લિમો માટે ફરમાન... #navratri #hindumuslimcontroversy #Svaman #rangmorla https://t.co/fUCXtCrSng
— Svaman (@svamanmedia) October 15, 2026
He also announced a helpline number if they spot 'such people'.
"The VHP wants you (garba participants) to look around and report suspicious people to the helpline number," Akash Trivedi, who is also tagged in Aditya Gadhvi's post, had said.
Gujarat VHP spokesperson Hitendrasinh Rajput said it was part of a routine exercise carried out by Bajrang Dal volunteers at garba events in Gujarat.
"Usually, Bajrang Dal, the youth wing of the BJP visits garba events in Ahmedabad and meets the organisers, asking them to prevent non-Hindus from entering the venue. Sometimes, they also apply tilak on the foreheads of men attending the events and remove suspicious people from the ground," Rajput told PTI.
In the caption of his post, Aditya Gadhvi wrote, "Spreading love and joy is only our intention! People who know me do not need any clarification but, this for people who do not know me personally. We have faith in law and order."
"We believe necessary actions will be taken," he further said.
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