Ahead of the month-long Kanwad Yatra, Hindu-Muslim politics has begun in Uttar Pradesh with Samajwadi Party MP ST Hasan alleging that some Hindu activists are forcibly checking IDs of staff working in dhabas and restaurants on Kanwad route. He compared them with those Pakistani terrorists who killed Hindu tourists in Pahalgam after ascertaining their religious identity. Hasan has alleged that a local baba Yashvir Maharaj, and his supporters were forcing dhaba employees to remove their pants to check their religious identity. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi alleged that such pro-Hindutva babas are being deliberately encouraged by those in power.
BJP leader Sudhanshu Trivedi clarified that rules for the display of names of owners and staff working in dhabas on Kanwad route are already in place. “If Muslim outfits can insist on Halal certificates on food products, where the government has no role, then why should the opposition object to the sanctity of Hindu religious yatras. Why this double standard?”
The controversy began when a video became viral in which a Vaishnav dhaba on National Highway-58, an employee claiming to be Gopal alleged that his pants were removed to check whether he was a Hindu or a Muslim. India TV reporter who went to Muzaffarnagar tracked the employee and revealed that the man’s real name is Tajammul, not Gopal, based on his Aadhaar card. Tajammul claimed that the dhaba owner asked him to wear a ‘kada’ on his wrist to pose as a Hindu.
The annual Kanwar Yatra will begin after a week, and the state administration is making arrangements to ensure that it passes off peacefully, when lakhs of Kanwar Yatris walk on foot and carry Ganga water from Haridwar to their respective places.
Nobody has the right to take law in one’s own hands, but the manner in which the controversy was created raises serious questions. Now that the truth has come out about the dhaba employee Tajammul, who concealed his identity and posed himself as Gopal, leaders like ST Hasan and Asaduddin Owaisi must answer: Who forced Tajammul to become Gopal and create a fake drama in collusion with a YouTuber? The offending YouTuber must also be nabbed.
I think it is a practical requirement if dhaba and hotel owners on Kanwad route are asked to display their names. This does not pertain to Food Department rules also. Those pilgrims who carry holy Ganga water during Kanwar Yatra need pure vegetarian food and their religious feelings must be respected. Those serving food to them must be Hindus. If pious Muslims can demand Halal certified food on grounds of faith, then Kanwar Yatris have the right to demand that they be served by Hindus.
