Srinagar: National Conference (NC) vice president Omar Abdullah on Tuesday welcomed the Supreme Court’s interim stay on the Kanwar Yatra order affecting eateries in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand
He questioned if a similar order could be issued for the Amarnath Yatra, as reported by PTI.
“If the (Kanwar Yatra) order was issued to keep Muslims away from that yatra, then for God’s sake tell me, when the (Amarnath) yatra takes place here, it is not possible without the Muslims,” Abdullah was quoted by as saying in PTI report.
Abdullah criticised the Kanwar Yatra order, stating it should not have existed. He emphasized that the annual Amarnath and Vaishno Devi yatras in Jammu and Kashmir rely on the support of Muslims.
“The Amarnath yatris undertake the yatra on the shoulders of Muslims. The people who take Mata Vaishno Devi pilgrims on horses or ‘pithus’ (porters), which religion do they belong to? They (BJP) do not see religion there,” he added.
On Monday, the Supreme Court ordered an interim stay on directives from BJP-ruled UP and Uttarakhand that required eateries along Kanwar Yatra routes to display the names of their owners and staff, which the opposition claimed promoted religious discrimination.
Regarding the GoI’s decision to revoke the ban on government employees participating in RSS functions, Abdullah argued that similar bans on participation in political parties’ functions should also be lifted, as “RSS is a political organization.”
“Such an order should be issued for political parties as well. Let the government employees come and join political parties,” he said.
Addressing the Union Budget presented on Tuesday, Abdullah noted he hadn’t watched the proceedings but highlighted key issues for Jammu and Kashmir, such as unemployment and water and electricity supply problems. He said the region’s two MPs would raise these issues if they were not addressed in the budget.
