New Delhi: President of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, Maulana Arshad Madani, has expressed strong opposition to the Uttar Pradesh government's recent directive requiring vendors on the Kanwar yatra route to display their religious identity.
Describing the move as a “new game of politics under the guise of religion,” Maulana Madani condemned the order as discriminatory and communal.
“This is a completely discriminatory and communal decision. Anti-national elements will get an opportunity to benefit from this decision, and there is fear of serious damage to communal harmony due to this new decree, which violates the fundamental rights of citizens as enshrined in the Constitution,” Maulana Madani stated.
The order mandates that all fruit and vegetable vendors, dhaba and hotel owners along the Kanwar yatra route display name cards indicating their religious affiliation.
Maulana Madani noted, “Earlier such an order was issued by the Muzaffarnagar administration, but now the official order of the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh has come out, in which not only Muzaffarnagar and its surrounding areas but also all the fruit and vegetable vendors, dhaba and hotel owners on the Kanwar yatra route were ordered to display their name cards on their shop, dhaba or restaurants.”
He highlighted the immediate negative impact saying, “So far, we have received information that managers or owners of many dhabas and hotels who were Muslims have been stopped from working during the Kanwar yatra. Obviously, who can dare to violate the official decree.”
Maulana Madani emphasised the constitutional violations inherent in the order, asserting, “All the citizens of the country have been given complete freedom in the Constitution to wear what they want, eat what they want; there will be no hindrance in their personal choice because this is a matter of the basic rights of the citizens. The Constitution clearly states that no discrimination will be done against any citizen of the country on the basis of his religion or caste, and every citizen will be treated equally. But in the past few years, discrimination on the basis of religion has become a common thing in the behaviour of the ruler. But now it seems that the ruler's order is now the constitution and the law.”
He further criticised the government’s actions, saying, “It is a sad thing that at the time of government formation, oath is taken in the name of the Constitution but after taking the oath, the same Constitution is put aside. We respect all religions, and no religion in the world says that you should hate the followers of other religions.”
Highlighting the historical context, Maulana Madani remarked, “This is not the first Kanwar yatra; it has been going on for a long time, but never before has a citizen been forced to reveal his religious identity. Rather, during the yatra, it is being seen that Muslims have been arranging water and langar for the Kanwar pilgrims.”
In response to the order, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind has scheduled a meeting of its legal team to explore the legal avenues available.
Maulana Madani warned, “This is the first time that a deliberate attempt has been made to isolate a particular sect of community and spread discrimination and hatred among citizens by issuing such a decree.”