Page 6 - The Indian EYE 072624

NATION JULY 26, 2024 | The Indian Eye 6

KANWARIYA YATRA

SC strikes down UP directive to eateries to

display name of owners along the route

While returning with Gangajal from Haridwar, Kanwariya pilgrims of Haryana kill a Jat
Regiment jawan by attacking him with sticks and sharp-edged weapons

OUR BUREAU
New Delhi
n a significant update, the Supreme Court has
put a stay on the directive issued by the gov-
Iernments of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and
Madhya Pradesh, which mandated eateries along
the Kanwariya Yatra route to display the owners’
names.
The Court, on Monday, issued notices to these
state governments, seeking their response to the
petitions challenging this directive and has sched-
uled the next hearing for July 26.
The Supreme Court emphasised that food
sellers should not be compelled to display the
names of owners and staff.
Earlier, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP
Arun Govil expressed support for the Uttar
Pradesh government’s directive, stating that there
was nothing wrong with displaying the owners’
names. He argued that consumers have the right
to know where their food comes from. In contrast,
Samajwadi Party MP Awadhesh Prasad criticised
the directive, accusing it of undermining national
unity and calling for its repeal. Kanwariyas carrying holy water of River Narmada for their walk towards ‘Gupteshwar Dham’ Temple during the holy month
The directive, which has sparked a political
controversy, was also supported by Uttar Pradesh of Shravan, in Jabalpur on Sunday (ANI)
cabinet minister Om Prakash Rajbhar, who clari-
fied that the regulation was initially introduced by Meanwhile, a large number of Kanwariya pil- Gangajal from Haridwar, Kanwariya pilgrims of
the UPA government in 2006. grims on Sunday staged a sit-in protest outside a Haryana killed a Jat Regiment jawan by attacking
Rajbhar asserted that the current BJP-led gov- police station in Rajasthan’s Jaipur after police him with sticks and sharp-edged weapons.
ernment is merely implementing existing laws, not personnel seized their DJ vehicle from the Jai- Haridwar’s Superintendent of Police (SP),
introducing new ones. pur-Ajmer Highway on Sunday. Dehat Pramendra Dobhal told ANI that the po-
“It was a law made by the UPA government in Kanwariyas were coming from Maleshwar lice have registered a case of culpable homicide
the year 2006. The BJP and NDA government did Dham on Sunday when they were stopped, and not amounting to murder against 20 Kanwariyas in
not come up with any new law. We are only doing their DJ vehicle was seized by police near Bagru this case and have arrested 6 Kanwariyas.
the work they were not able to do,” Rajbhar said. village in Jaipur. “Six nabbed, search on for others,” Dehat Pra-
Meanwhile, reacting to the row over using After the police seized that DJ the pilgrims mendra Dobhal, SP Rural said.
‘nameplates’ on food shops on the Kanwar route in got furious. The tension spread to the surrounding According to the police officer, the search for
UP and Uttarakhand, UP Congress state president areas and other groups of Kanwariya assembled the rest is on.
Ajay Rai said that if Chirag Paswan and Jayant together at the police station and started protest- The jawan, a resident of Muzaffarnagar, was
Chaudhary are against this decision, then they ing. Along with the pilgrims, villagers also partici- also returning with Gangajal.
should withdraw their support from the government. pated in the demonstration. The 25-year-old deceased jawan was a resi-
On July 19, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister To avoid any untoward incident during the dent of Sisoli in Muzaffarnagar and was presently
Yogi Adityanath mandated that food and bever- protest, heavy police forces from six stations in- posted in the Jat Regiment in Gujarat.
age shops along Kanwar routes should display cluding Bagru, Bhankrota, SEZ, Bindayaka, ‘Kanwar Yatra’ is an annual pilgrimage under-
the name and identity of the operator/owner to Kalwad, and Karnivihar were deployed. Riot con- taken by Lord Shiva’s devotees in which devotees
maintain the sanctity of the pilgrims’ faith. Similar trol vehicles and additional police force including are known as ‘Kanwariyas’ visit places like Harid-
orders were also issued in Uttrakhand and Ujjain, Bagru, Bhankrota, SEZ, Bindayaka, Kalwad, and war, Gaumukh and Gangotri in Uttarakhand and
Madhya Pradesh. The Kanwar Yatra has got un- Kaand Ranivihar were also present during the Sultanganj in Bihar to fetch the holy water of the
derway with Monday marking the first Monday of demonstration at the police station. Ganges and then worship the God with the same
the month of Sawn. In another development, While returning with water.

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