Row over ID checks of Kanwar route eatery owners; UP police summons 6

Muzaffarnagar (UP): Police have summoned six people for conducting unauthorised verification of the identities of eatery owners along the Kanwar Yatra route, officials said on Wednesday after a video surfaced on social media showing some individuals allegedly misbehaving with the staff of a 'dhaba'.

The six people are said to be associates of Swami Yashveer Maharaj, who runs the Yoga Sadhana Yashveer Ashram in Baghra which has conducted "ghar wapsi" (conversion to Hinduism) ceremonies for multiple Muslim families.

The incident has brought back into focus the controversy that erupted last year when BJP-led governments in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand directed food outlets along the Kanwar route to display the names of their owners and staff. The opposition had alleged that it was aimed at religious exclusion, and the Supreme Court had stayed the directives.

New Mandi Station House Officer Dinesh Chand Bhagal said six activists have been directed to appear at the police station within three days for questioning regarding their alleged involvement in checking identity documents of owners of eateries located along the Kanwar Yatra route without permission from the district administration.

"More notices are likely to be issued to other individuals seen in the video. We are taking this matter seriously and all legal angles are being examined," he said.

The six who have been identified as Sumit Bahraghi, Rohit, Vivek, Sumit, Sunny and Rakesh. All of them are associated with Swami Yashveer's ashram in Baghra here, the police said.

Meanwhile, the police on Wednesday lodged an FIR against five people -- an eatery operator Sanawar, his son Adil, along with Zubair and two others -- for allegedly beating up its ex-manager Dharmendra on Tuesday, the SHO said.

The FIR was lodged on the complaint of Dharmedra, who has alleged that he was attacked because he revealed that the eatery with a "Hindu name" was being run by a Muslim.

According to locals, Swami Yashveer on Sunday started a "drive" to check the background of owners of eateries located on the Kanwar Yatra route, claiming it was necessary for the safety of pilgrims.

The Kanwar Yatra, which will start on July 11 this year, is an annual pilgrimage undertaken by Lord Shiva's devotees, known as kanwars or kanwariyas, who fetch holy water from the Ganga river during the auspicious Hindu month of Shravan. This holy water is then offered to Lord Shiva.

In September last year, the UP government had directed that that the name and address of operators, proprietors and managers should be mandatorily displayed at all food outlets.

The BJP and opposition parties are now again sparring on the issue after the Uttarakhand government made it mandatory for eateries on the Kanwar Yatra route in the state to prominently display their food licenses or registration certificates at their business establishments.

Former Samajwadi Party MP S T Hasan on Wednesday condemned the alleged religious profiling of eatery owners along the Kanwar Yatra route in Uttarakhand by some Hindu outfits, calling the act a "form of terrorism." Purported videos of such incidents circulating on social media showed volunteers allegedly coercing people to prove their religious identity.

"It seems the state government is silently supporting these acts. In a secular country like India, this kind of behaviour is shameful. It should be stopped," Hasan said.

The BJP slammed the remarks and asked opposition leaders to remove their anti-Modi lens.

"As far as Hasan's statement is concerned, I would like to ask him why he wants to stand with those who hide their names.

They should remove their "anti-Modi" lenses and then they will see the real picture of the country," BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said.