New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh police's latest directive asking eateries on the Kanwar Yatra route in Muzaffarnagar to display their owners' names has stirred a row with the Opposition linking the move to "apartheid" in South Africa and policies in Hitler's Germany. Kanwar Yatra, an annual pilgrimage by Lord Shiva devotees, will begin on July 22.
Muzaffarnagar Police has mandated all food joints along the route to display their owner's name prominently to avoid confusion during the religious procession.
"Preparations have begun for the kanwar yatra. In the area under our jurisdiction, which is around 240 km, all eateries, hotels, dhabas, and thelas (roadside carts) have been instructed to display the names of their proprietors or those running the shop. This is being done to ensure that there's no confusion among the kanwariyas and no allegations are raised in the future, leading to a law and order situation. Everyone is following this of their own free will," Abhishek Singh, Senior Superintendent of Police, Muzaffarnagar, said during a press conference.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi claimed that this move was to ensure no 'Kanwariya' buys anything from a Muslim owner's shop.
"As per the order of the Uttar Pradesh Police, now every food shop or cart owner must put his name on the board so that no Kanwadia buys anything from a Muslim shop by mistake. This was called Apartheid in South Africa and in Hitler's Germany, it was called 'Judenboycott'," Owaisi said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
Apartheid, deemed a crime against humanity and subject to prosecution under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, is characterized as a "legally sanctioned system of racial segregation," whereby one racial group is systematically deprived of political and civil rights. In contrast, 'Judenboycott' refers to the Nazi-initiated boycott of Jewish businesses commencing in April 1933.
Bollywood lyricist and screenwriter Javed Akhtar also asked why such instructions had been put out by the police.
"Muzaffarnagar UP police has given instructions that on the route of a particular religious procession in near future all the shops restaurants and even vehicles should show the owner's name prominently and clearly. Why? In Nazi Germany they used to make only a mark on particular shops and houses," Javed Akhtar posted on X.
Amid a raging debate on social media over the controversial directive, UP police have put out a statement clarifying that the intention of this order is not to create any kind of "religious discrimination" but only to facilitate the devotees.
"During the Shravan Kanwar Yatra, a large number of Kanwariyas from neighbouring states, via Western Uttar Pradesh, collect water from Haridwar and pass through Muzaffarnagar district. During the holy month of Shravan, many people, especially Kanwariyas, abstain from certain food items in their diet," the Muzaffarnagar police said in a statement.