Now, eatery order across entire Uttar Pradesh; in Uttarakhand too

New Delhi, July 19

Despite a blowback from allies LJP, RLD and JD(U), the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh on Friday extended the controversial rule asking eatery owners along the Kanwar Yatra route to display their credentials, with Uttarakhand saying the rule is already in place there.

• Editorial: Kanwar Yatra row

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami asked why anyone should have a problem in introducing themselves. “This decision regarding asking shops across Kanwar route was taken at a Kanwar Yatra review meeting on July 12,” Dhami said. A UP government spokesperson said the rule (which created a row following the implementation by Muzaffarnagar administration) was being extended across the state.

Meanwhile, the NDA was divided on the issue. NDA ally JDU’s KC Tyagi said a yatra bigger than UP’s took place in Bihar, where there was no such order. “This UP order is against PM Modi’s slogan of ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’. It would be good to review it,” said Tyagi. LJP leader Chirag Paswan said: “I will never support anything that divides in the name of caste or religion.” Trilok Tyagi, general secretary of RLD, said: “This practice is wrong. Mahatma Gandhi, Chaudhary Charan Singh spoke about rising above caste and religion.”