Kanwar Yatra: After Uttar Pradesh government, Uttarakhand issued directions to install ‘nameplates’ of the owner of all on-board restaurants on the Kanwar Yatra route across the state. Haridwar Senior Superintendent of Police Pramod Singh Dobal said, “All those running hotels, dhabas or street food stalls have been directed to display the name, QR code and mobile number of the owner at their establishment. ‘Strict action will be taken against those who will not comply and they will also be expelled from the Kanwar route.'” According to an order of the UP CMO, reported news agency ANI, the decision comes hours after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ordered the installation of nameplates to maintain the sanctity of the faith of Kanwar pilgrims.
The CMO order further states that action will be taken against those selling halal certified products. The decision comes days after the Muzaffarnagar police issued directions to all restaurants on the yatra route to display the names of their respective owners to avoid any “confusion”. However, a controversy erupted after opposition parties called the move an act of “state-sponsored intolerance” and an action targeting “Muslim” traders. Congress’ UP unit chief Ajay Rai condemned the decision and said the BJP-led government was trying to create distances between people. “This is absolutely impractical. They are trying to harm the feeling of brotherhood in society, trying to create distances between people. This should be revoked immediately…,” he said.
AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi likened the Uttar Pradesh police’s decision to “apartheid” in South Africa and “Judenboycott” in Hitler’s Germany. “As per the Uttar Pradesh police order, now every food shop or thela wala will have to write their name on the board so that no kanwariya buys anything from a Muslim shop by mistake,” he said. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav criticised the state government, saying, “Such orders are a social crime. The government wants to ruin the peaceful atmosphere.” Meanwhile, UP minister Kapil Dev Agarwal alleged that some Muslim traders sell non-veg food to pilgrims under the guise of Hindu names. “They write names like Vaishno Dhaba Bhandar, Shakumbhari Devi Bhojanalaya and Shuddh Bhojanalaya and sell non-vegetarian food,” India Today quoted the minister as saying. Amid a heated debate over the directive, the UP police issued a statement clarifying that the order is not intended to create any kind of “religious discrimination” but only to facilitate devotees. The Kanwar Yatra will begin from Monday, July 22.
