Sawan has arrived. Uttar Pradesh police made it public through a notice. The notice is not about Sawan though. It is about Kanwar Yatra. This is in keeping with the BJP times, as now in North India, especially in Uttar Pradesh, Sawan has become synonymous with Kanwar Yatra. And Kanwar Yatra is no longer just about devotion to Shiva or Shiva Bhakti; it’s about the dominance of a particular type of Hindus.

And the dominance of Hindus means oppressing, torturing, or humiliating Muslims in different ways. Police have allowed themselves to become the most powerful means to establish this anti-Muslim Hindu dominance. Now the police are going one step further and promoting untouchability on the basis of religion.

According to media reports, Senior Superintendent of Police, Muzaffarnagar, Abhishek Singh said, “Preparations have begun for the Kanwar Yatra. In the area under our jurisdiction, which is around 240 km, all eateries – hotels, dhabas, thelas (roadside carts) – have been instructed to display the names of their proprietors or those running the shop. This is being done to ensure that there’s no confusion among the Kanwariyas and no allegations are raised in the future, leading to a law and order situation. Everyone is following this of their own free will.”

One feels like asking the gentleman who is heading the police force in Muzaffarnagar what the meaning of ‘free will’ is when the police are giving specific instructions. Who dares to disobey the order of the police! However, Mr. Singh needs to realise that what the police are doing is a direct violation of the Constitution. This is also dividing society in an official way.

Initially, no statement came from any political party or leader on this instruction. Yes! MP Asaduddin Owaisi did react: “As per the order of Uttar Pradesh Police, now the owner of every food shop or cart will have to put his name on the board so that no Kanwariya buys anything from a Muslim shop by mistake. This was called Apartheid in South Africa and in Hitler’s Germany it was called ‘Judenboycott’.”

When objections started being raised on social media, another statement from the Uttar Pradesh police came clarifying that the order was not to discriminate on the basis of religion but only to take care of the sensitivities of the Kanwariyas who can get confused by religious........

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