Veteran Bollywood screenwriter Javed Akhtar is not only known for his unmatchable stint in the Hindi film industry but also for being vocal on national and other social issues regularly. On Thursday, Akhtar put out his views on the ongoing controversy over eateries on the Kanwar Yatra route in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar where the local police have ordered to display of the owners' names at the shop. Taking to his X (previously called Twitter) account, the veteran lyricist compared the decision to 'Nazi Germany'.
See Javed Akhtar's post:
After a row erupted over eateries on the Kanwar Yatra route in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar being asked to display their owners' names, Muzaffarnagar Police on Thursday said that the police have urged all the eateries to "voluntarily display" the names of their owners and employees, adding that the intention of this order is not to create any kind of "religious discrimination" but only to facilitate the devotees.
"During the Shravan Kanwar Yatra, a large number of Kanwariyas from neighbouring states, via Western Uttar Pradesh, collect water from Haridwar and pass through Muzaffarnagar district. During the holy month of Shravan, many people, especially Kanwariyas, abstain from certain food items in their diet," the Muzaffarnagar police stated.
"In the past, such instances have come to light where some shopkeepers selling all types of food items on Kanwar Marg named their shops in such a way that it created confusion among the Kanwariyas and created a law and order situation. To prevent such a recurrence and in view of the faith of the devotees, hotels, dhabas and shopkeepers selling food items on Kanwar Marg have been requested to voluntarily display the names of their owners and employees. The intention of this order is not to create any kind of religious discrimination but only to facilitate the devotees passing through Muzaffarnagar district, counter allegations and save the law and order situation. This system has been prevalent in the past, too," it added.
Earlier, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi also slammed the Uttar Pradesh Police and likened the significant move to "apartheid" in South Africa and "judenboycott" in Hitler's Germany.
For the unversed, the holy Kanwar Yatra 2024 will begin on July 22 and UP's Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has reviewed the preparations for the event.
