After major allies like JD (U) and LJP, BJP's another significant ally in the NDA --the Rashtriya Lok Dal -- on Sunday demanded the Uttar Pradesh Government roll back its order that eateries along the Kanwar route must display the names of their owners, saying the pilgrimage does not belong to any one religion or caste.
Union Minister Jayant Chaudhary said kanwariyas ask no-one their religion when they seek any service from them, neither should the matter (the pilgrimage) be linked to any religion.
Chaudhary also wondered if one should wear a name tag on one's clothes to identify one's religion. "Where all one would be made to place these identifiers! Should we now wear name tags too? So that one knows who to shake hands with?" he said.
"It seems that the order was taken without much thought and the Government is adamant on it because the decision has been taken," Rajya Sabha member Chaudhary told reporters here.
"There is still time. It (roll back) should happen or the government should not put much emphasis on (implementing) it," he said.
Chaudhary remarks has come a day after his colleague in the Union Council of Ministers Chirag Paswan condemned such a order which is communal in nature as JDU too already expressed its annoyance on the controversy that is peaking when the Kanwar Yatra is scheduled from Monday.
Days after the Muzaffarnagar Police asked all eateries along the Kanwar Yatra route to display their owners' names, the Uttar Pradesh Government on Friday extended the controversial order across the State. The order has been slammed by Opposition parties and members of the ruling alliance, who say it targets Muslim traders.
