A fresh order by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directing the businesses in the Kanwar pilgrims route to display nameplates, has caused unease within a section of party as well as the BJP’s partners in NDA like JD(U) and LJP. The Uttarakhand Government too followed the suit and issued similar directives besides verification of the shops and its owners enroute the Kanwar pilgrimage which orginates from Haridwar.
The fresh order came after the controversial directives of Muzzaffarnagar police which mandated the eateries enroute to display names of owners later to be withdrawn saying it was just optional advisory.
Not only the Opposition but senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Union Minister Chirag Paswan, JD(U) spokesman KC Tyagi amongst several others expressed concern over the communal directives. Congress said it as an "attack on the Constitution" and demanded the order be withdrawn.
The BJP, which is in power at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh, has defended the measure, claiming that it allows fasting Hindus who may want to eat at a pure vegetarian restaurant, where the likelihood of them being served 'satvik' food is higher.
“Nameplate will have to be put on the food shops on the Kanwar routes across Uttar Pradesh. The decision was taken to maintain the purity of the faith of Kanwar pilgrims. Action will also be taken against those selling products with Halal certification,” the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister’s office said.
UP State Minister Kapil Dev Agarwal said most of the outlets with names of Hindu deities are run by Muslims and they sell non-vegetarian food. He said those outlets must be identified and prohibited.
“This is not a matter about every food cart. Those who carry 'jal' from Haridwar and travel for 250-300 km cross this route to reach their destination. We had urged the district administration that all such people who run their dhaba/hotel after the names of Hindu deities are mostly from the Muslim community. Kanwariyas visit their shops where non-vegetarian food is sold. So, the name of the shop is after a Hindu deity, but non-vegetarian is sold there; all such establishments should be prohibited, they should be identified,” the Minister said.
Agarwal said they are not against the sale of non-vegetarian food but Kanwariyas would not eat from such outlets. “We have no objection to the sale of non-vegetarian food, Kanwariyas would not purchase it. We have only urged that non-vegetarian food should not be sold by opening shops after the names of Hindu deities; so the administration has acted accordingly. Politicians are giving it a Hindu-Muslim angle. But it is not a Hindu-Muslim matter, it is a matter of social harmony. People can sit and eat wherever they want, but they should have the knowledge of where they are sitting,” Agarwal added.
Naqvi slammed the decision and said the hasty orders may give rise to the disease of untouchability. “ Faith must be respected, but untouchability must not be patronised," the former Union Minister in Narendra Modi’s second term, said.
Union Minister Chirag Paswan unequivocally opposed the advisory saying he will "absolutely never support or encourage" any divide in the name of caste or religion. "We need to bridge the gap between these two classes of people. It is every government's responsibility to work for the poor, which includes all sections of society such as Dalits, backwards, upper castes and Muslims as well. All are there. We need to work for them," Paswan said.
He added, "Whenever there is such divide in the name of caste or religion, I absolutely do not either support it or encourage it. I do not think any educated young person of my age, irrespective of the caste or religion they come from, is affected by such things."
Another BJP ally, Janata Dal (United), too criticised the advisory which, police have insisted, is meant to ensure that there should be no confusion among 'kanwarias' (pilgrims on route to offer holy water to Lord Shiva) and no law-and-order situation arises.
Congress and Samajwadi Party slammed the directive and termed it "an assault on India's culture", alleging that it intended to normalise the economic boycott of Muslims. "Our Constitution guarantees every citizen that he will not be discriminated against on the basis of caste, religion, language or any other basis. The divisive order to put up name boards of the owners of carts, kiosks and shops in Uttar Pradesh is an attack on our Constitution, our democracy and our shared heritage," said Priyanka Gandhi.
On Yogi’s latest missive, Naqvi claimed the Yogi Adityanath government has cleared the "confusion" arising out of the Muzaffarnagar Police order asking eateries on the Kanwar Yatra route to display their owners' names and said it has now given a guideline for the sanctity of the pilgrimage.
"This order is for the sanctity, reverence and safety of the Kanwar Yatra, there is no scope for creating any kind of communal confusion on this, the safety and harmony of the society is the collective responsibility of all of us, any kind of communal conflict is not in interest of country or any community," the former minority affairs minister said.
