Eateries along kanwar yatra route in Muzaffarnagar must display owners’ name: SSP

Earlier this month, Muzaffarnagar MLA and Minister of State (independent charge) Kapil Dev Aggarwal in the Uttar Pradesh government had held a meeting on preparations for the yatra. He had said that while he had no objection to Muslims running businesses in the area, they should not name their shops after Hindu gods or goddesses to avoid any conflict.

Last year, Swami Yashvir Maharaj, a priest from a prominent ashram in Muzaffarnagar’s Baghra, had demanded that Muslim traders display their names on their shops and hotels.

Eatery owners in Muzaffarnagar acknowledged that the orders are being enforced. A tea stall owner in Khatauli said he changed the name of his establishment from Chai Lover’s Point to Waqeel Sahab Tea Stall. He claimed that officials told him this was not clear enough, so he again changed it to Waqeel Ahmad Tea Stall.

Similarly, another eatery owner said he changed the name of his establishment – from Shiva dhaba to Vishambhar Nath dhaba – around 10 days ago.

Khatauli town in Muzaffarnagar is the midpoint between Delhi and Haridwar. The 240 km route crosses villages such as Bhuraheri, Bhangela, Budhna, Fugana and Titana.

Speaking about the preparations made by the police for the Kanwar Yatra and Muharram processions, Uttar Pradesh DGP Prashant Kumar said on Wednesday, “The state government and the police department had pre-decided that all things will be organised traditionally. No new tradition will be allowed. We move ahead with this basic plan and contact religious leaders and the peace committee for more help and support. This is one reason why, after 2017, there has been no kind of disruption to peace during celebrations. This time as well, on the instructions of the state government, I along with the Chief Secretary visited various places to inspect the preparations… We planned on deciding a height for all the DJs during the Kanwar Yatra and the Tazia processions during Muharram. The volume limit of the DJ has also been set so that religious processions do not cause any inconvenience to anyone… Nearly 15,000 processions are being carried out today and things are going on smoothly. Sixty-five companies of PSE, 60 companies of CRPF, and civil police companies have been deployed… In west UP, Rohelkhand, Bareilly, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Ayodhya, and other regions, where Mondays draw large crowds, special arrangements have been made keeping in mind five Mondays falling in the month of saavan.”