A new rule in northern India aimed to ensure Hindus do not buy food from Muslim-owned restaurants has sparked ‘apartheid’ fears among furious citizens and opposition leaders.
The chief minister of India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, backed a plan on Friday requiring restaurants and roadside eateries to display the names of their owners.
Yogi Adityanath, a saffron-robed Hindu monk who heads the northern Indian state, said the order would be enforced along a route taken by thousands of Hindu pilgrims during the holy month of Shravan every year.
Local media quoted an order from the chief minister’s office asserting that the measure was intended to maintain the ‘purity of the faith’ of the pilgrims, known as “kanwarias.”
Devotees must follow dietary restrictions, such as no meat, during their journey – a practice that has been cited by police officers to justify the directions given.
A new rule in northern India aimed to ensure Hindus do not buy food from Muslim-owned restaurants has sparked ‘apartheid’ fears among furious citizens and opposition leaders
The restaurant order has since drawn sharp criticism, with critics condemning it as an act of religious apartheid.
One opposition politician has argued that the directive’s true intention is to prevent Hindus from unknowingly supporting Muslim-owned businesses.
On social media, Asaduddin Owaisi, a lawmaker, likened the move to apartheid in South Africa and the “Judenboycott” in Nazi Germany.
‘What next? Muslims to wear equivalent of Star of David on their sleeve to mark themselves?’ wrote Mahua Moitra, another opposition lawmaker.
Rights groups say hate crimes and violence against India’s large Muslim minority have been on the rise since Hindu-nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014.
Uttar Pradesh has been governed by Modi’s right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party since 2017, when it appointed Adityanath as chief minister.
During his tenure, Hindu mobs have launched a spate of attacks over so-called cow protection – the cow being a sacred animal for many Hindus – and committed other hate crimes that have sown fear among the state’s Muslim population.
In November, Uttar Pradesh also banned the production, storage, distribution and sale of halal-certified food, with products manufactured for export exempted from the ban, according to the Economic Times.
The chief minister of India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, backed a plan on Friday requiring restaurants and roadside eateries to display the names of their owners
The restaurant order has since drawn sharp criticism, with critics condemning it as an act of religious apartheid
The order has undoubtedly fueled the continuous debate over religious freedom and discrimination in India, reflecting the growing tensions between Hindu nationalists and the country’s Muslim minority.
It comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi controversially opened a Hindu temple built on the ruins of a historical mosque in the flashpoint city of Ayodhya in January.
The temple, which is still under construction, is dedicated to the Hindu god Lord Ram and fulfils a long-standing demand by millions of Hindus who worship the revered deity.
Portrayed as a Hindu awakening from centuries of subjugation by Muslim and colonial powers, the consecration of the Ram Mandir temple is also being seen as a crucial step in catapulting Modi to a record third successive term in upcoming elections.
Modi, dressed in a traditional kurta tunic, led the opening ceremony as Hindu priests chanted hymns inside the temple’s inner sanctum, where a 4.3ft stone sculpture of Lord Ram was installed.
