A major controversy has erupted following the directive of the Muzaffarnagar administration that all eateries and shops on the Yatra route should display the names of their owners prominently to avoid any "confusion" that might arise on account of the Kanwar Yatris.
The district administration, in an official order circulated in print and online, asked all retail and commercial outlets in Muzaffarnagar to put up the names of the business owners, apparently to prevent any possible identity confusion that could lead to a law and order problem in the area during the yatra.
Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav lashed out at the order and said it could upset communal harmony. He questioned the importance of names, saying, "What can be made out of a name like Guddu, Munna, Chhotu, or Fatte?" Yadav's party had registered its best-ever performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, after which the former Chief Minister smelled a "conspiracy" against a particular community. He called for the judiciary to take note of the order suo motu.
"The honourable court should, on its own, inquire into the intentions of the government in issuing such an administrative order and take due punitive action. Such kind of orders is a social crime with an intention of disturbing an atmosphere of harmony and peace," Yadav posted on social media platform X.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi also condemned the "discriminatory" order, comparing it to "apartheid" in South Africa and the 'Judenboycott' (boycott of Jewish businesses) in Nazi Germany. In a post on X, Owaisi wrote, "As per the Uttar Pradesh Police order, every food shop or cart owner should display their name outside the shop, so that, Kanwariyas may not mistakenly eat from a shop belonging to a Muslim. This is called Apartheid in South Africa. In Hitler's Germany, it was called 'Judenboycott'."
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera slammed the Muzaffarnagar police's act as "state-sponsored bigotry" and said that "every citizen of conscience, along with the media, should stand together against it. We cannot allow the BJP to regress the country into the dark ages."
The Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Muzaffarnagar, meanwhile, justified the order saying it was placed to ensure that the Kanwar Yatris, who pass through town during the month of Shravan, could stay comfortably without any problems. He clarified that shopkeepers let the situation get better without being forced to.
Out of these, almost 240 km of the Kanwar Yatra route is in the Muzaffarnagar district.
The order further said that all the eateries, including hotels, dhabas, and carts, must put up hoardings displaying the names of proprietors or employees.
"This has been done to ensure that there is no vagueness in the minds of the Kanwariyas and therefore there is no law and order problem. All the shopkeepers are doing it voluntarily," the SSP said to reporters on Monday.
The sale of liquor and meat shops has been ordered to be closed for the entire month of Kanwar Yatra. The officials concerned have also been asked to ensure that the movement of Kanwar Yatris does not get hampered by stray animals.
For the uninitiated, this time Kanwar will, therefore, begin on July 22, the first day of the Shravan month. Devotees will pick up holy water from the Ganga river at Haridwar and Rishikesh and offer it to Lord Shiva at temples in their respective places.
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