Sewa Nyaya Utthan Opens ‘Hindu Kirana Shop’ for Tribal Woman Who Lost Husband in Communal Hate

Raisen, Madhya Pradesh: In a remote all-tribal village in Madhya Pradesh, a small provisions store now stands as a quiet monument to resilience against hate.

The store belongs to Phoolabai Gond, a 50-year-old woman whose husband was killed three years ago in a violent communal clash.

The violence erupted on Holi in 2022, when a dispute over the traditional throwing of colors escalated between tribal Hindu villagers from Chandpur and Chainpur, and Muslim residents from the nearby village of Khamariya Khurd.

Later that evening, a group of unarmed tribal men, including Phoolabai’s husband Hari Dhurve, went to Khamariya Khurd seeking answers. According to witnesses, Khamariya Khurd was plunged in darkness when they arrived, and gunfire erupted from the shadows.

Hari Dhurve was crushed under a tractor; another man, Raju Dhurve, was shot dead. All casualties that day were from one side.

Police arrested several men from Khamariya Khurd on charges including murder, rioting and attempted murder. FIR No. 106/2022 was registered at Silvani police station in Raisen district. While arrests were made, most of the accused are now out on bail and several witnessed have turned hostile. The trial remains pending.

The killings briefly attracted national attention but soon faded from public view. For Phoolabai, the consequences were immediate and personal. “I was suddenly alone with my two children, with no way to survive,” she said.

In May 2025, at a public event in Silvani block attended by the Governor of Madhya Pradesh and National Human Rights Commission member Priyank Kanoongo, Swati Goel Sharma, editor of Rashtra Jyoti, met the women.

Swati visited the houses of both the women to assess their situation. Phoolabai requested for a grocery shop.

See the video of Swati’s visit here.

Sewa Nyaya Utthan Foundation stepped in with all support for the shop. Now, it’s opened and named ‘Hindu Kirana Dukaan‘ in memory of her husband. The shop stocks grains, oil, soap and other daily necessities.

The shop’s opening underscores a larger challenge: limited support mechanisms for families affected by identity-based violence.

Sewa Nyaya Utthan Foundation has often stepped into this gap, providing targeted assistance where formal systems often fail to reach, she added.

Meanwhile, trial into the 2022 violence continues, but community members express frustration at the slow process and concerns about retaliation.

Read a news report on the shop’s inauguration in local media.