The Supreme Court, on Monday, has put interim stay till July 26 on the Uttar Pradesh government’s directive that the shopkeepers along the Kanwar Yatra route must display the “names of owners and employees.”
The apex court said that shop owners will, however, be required to display the kind of food they are serving to Kanwariyas.
A Bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and SVN Bhatti, while issuing notice on a batch of petitions challenging the government directives, issued notice saying that the state government’s order asking shopkeepers along the Kanwar Yatra route to display their names is “exclusion by identity”.
“Until the returnable date, having regard to the… discussion, we deem it appropriate to pass interim order prohibiting the enforcement of the above directives. In other words, the food sellers… hawkers etc may be required to display the kind of food they are serving to Kanwariyas but they must be not be forced to disclose the names…,” the SC ordered.
Authorities of various states, including Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, have ordered shop owners and hawkers on Kanwar yatra route to display their names outside their premises.
The holy month of Sawan 2024 has begun on Monday (July 22) during which devotees carry Kanwar, a bamboo pole with pitchers filled with Ganga Jal attached on both sides, and travel to Lord Shiva temples.
Among the most popular is the Haridwar Route. Devotees take Ganga Jal from Haridwar to the Neelkanth Mahadev Temple in Rishikesh or the Pura Mahadeva Temple in Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh.
SC hears pleas challenging the directive
The Supreme Court was hearing pleas filed by Association for Protection of Civil Rights, Delhi University Professor Apoorvanand with activist Aakar Patel, and Trinamool Congress Member of Parliament (MP) Mahua Moitra against the directive issued by Uttar Pradesh Police.
In her plea before the top court, Moitra has sought a stay on the orders passed by the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand saying such directives aggravate discord between communities.
Both the governments had issued orders, asking eateries on the Kanwar yatra route to display names of owners.
Besides them, the BJP-ruled Ujjain Municipal Corporation had directed shop owners to display their names and mobile numbers outside their establishments in the ancient city.
Violators will have to pay a Rs 2,000 fine for the first offence and Rs 5,000 if they defy this order for the second time, Ujjain Mayor Mukesh Tatwal said on Saturday.
This order is aimed at ensuring safety and transparency and not intended to target Muslim shop-keepers, the mayor had said.
With inputs from agencies
Link to article –
Supreme Court orders interim stay on UP govt’s Kanwar Yatra eateries ‘nameplate’ order
