Kanwar route eatery staff stripped to ascertain faith
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Agra: Members of a Hindu outfit allegedly tried to forcibly verify the religious identity of a dhaba worker by attempting to strip him during an 'identity campaign' near the Kanwar Yatra route on Saturday at Pandit Ji Vaishno Dhaba along Delhi-Dehradun National Highway 58 in Muzaffarnagar.
The confrontation began when the team scanned the eatery's QR code and claimed, erroneously, that the owner belonged to the minority community.
The employee at the receiving end of the assault, Gopal, said, "I work here and live at the hotel. These people tried to take off my pants. First, they asked for my Aadhaar card, but I don't have it. They were intent on stripping me naked. I'm unwell. I told them I'm not a Muslim, I am a Hindu.
I didn't lie."
Police soon reached the spot and brought the situation under control. However, no formal complaint was filed by Gopal or the dhaba owner. New Mandi SHO Dinesh Chand said, "We controlled the situation and no police complaint was filed by anyone in the matter."
Self-styled seer Swami Yashveer Ji Maharaj, who runs an ashram in Muzaffarnagar and led the 'Pehchan Abhiyan' (identity campaign) said several food outlets on the Kanwar route use Hindu names despite being run by individuals from other communities, which could "mislead pilgrims."
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He said, "We have warned this dhaba to change its name within 24 hours or face a protest starting tomorrow morning. This is not a Hindu-run establishment and is misusing the name 'Pandit'." He referred to state govt directives requiring eateries to display the owner's name and warned of legal action under Section 420 for misrepresentation.
Multiple dhabas operate along NH-58 in Muzaffarnagar, many of which shut during the Kanwar Yatra if they serve non-vegetarian food.
Last year, similar pressure was applied on fruit sellers and dhaba owners to display their names. However, in July 2024, Supreme Court issued an interim stay on such directives from the UP and Uttarakhand govts. The court held that eateries and shops could only be required to indicate whether they serve veg or non-veg food, not display names of owners or staff.
The directive, which had emerged during last year's Yatra, had led to harassment of Muslim shopkeepers and staff.
Several establishments were reportedly forced to shut, dismiss Muslim workers, or alter names to avoid targeting. Opposition leaders and rights activists termed the orders discriminatory and said they risked marginalising specific communities economically.
Muzaffarnagar borders Uttarakhand and serves as a key passage for lakhs of devotees from UP, Delhi, Rajasthan, and Haryana, who collect Ganga water from Haridwar during the Shravan month. When asked about the ongoing identity campaign, SP (city), Satyanarayan Prajapat, said, "The guidelines of the Supreme Court will be followed."
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