<p>The ban sought to be imposed by right-wing activists on Muslims setting up stalls at venues of temple fairs is part of a sinister design to polarise the entire state on communal lines with an eye on the 2023 Assembly elections. Such polarisation has already taken place in many parts of coastal Karnataka and is now spreading across the state. There are many temples in the state that attract people from all religions, and it has been a tradition for decades for both Hindus and Muslims to set up stalls and conduct business in harmony with each other. Now, posters have come up around some temples announcing that Muslims are not welcome as they had shut their shops in protest against the Karnataka High Court’s decision on the hijab controversy. When the issue was raised in the legislature, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and Law Minister J C Madhuswamy made no attempt to condemn the actions of right-wing activists but took shelter under a little-known law enacted by the Congress government in 2002. Rule 12 of the Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowments Act says, “Land, building, site near the temple/institutions should not be given on lease to non-Hindus.” The rule refers to terms of lease of immovable property of a notified institution.</p>.<p>While disallowing business activity by non-Hindus within the premises of temples may be justified considering the religious sentiments involved, stretching it to fairs in which an entire village or town usually participates is wrong and far-fetched. In any case, no vigilante groups should have the power to impose such a ban. They are only trying to drive a wedge between the two communities. The government’s failure to initiate action against these anti-social elements amounts to extending support to them. Primary and Secondary Education Minister B C Nagesh has wrongly defended the culprits suggesting that the posters were a reaction to the protests against the hijab judgement.</p>.<p>Most temples come under the Muzrai department. The government cannot discriminate among religions while awarding tenders for shops or implementing other projects. Even more than the ban per se is the question of how the government has allowed vigilante groups to take the law into their hands. Only the government machinery can enforce the ban, not partisan groups. Right-wing Hindutva groups are trying to socially exclude the minorities and cut them off from the mainstream, including their livelihoods, under various pretexts. This has become stronger and the atmosphere in the state has become more vitiated under the present government. It will do harm to the state both in the short term and the long term. </p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>
<p>The ban sought to be imposed by right-wing activists on Muslims setting up stalls at venues of temple fairs is part of a sinister design to polarise the entire state on communal lines with an eye on the 2023 Assembly elections. Such polarisation has already taken place in many parts of coastal Karnataka and is now spreading across the state. There are many temples in the state that attract people from all religions, and it has been a tradition for decades for both Hindus and Muslims to set up stalls and conduct business in harmony with each other. Now, posters have come up around some temples announcing that Muslims are not welcome as they had shut their shops in protest against the Karnataka High Court’s decision on the hijab controversy. When the issue was raised in the legislature, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and Law Minister J C Madhuswamy made no attempt to condemn the actions of right-wing activists but took shelter under a little-known law enacted by the Congress government in 2002. Rule 12 of the Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowments Act says, “Land, building, site near the temple/institutions should not be given on lease to non-Hindus.” The rule refers to terms of lease of immovable property of a notified institution.</p>.<p>While disallowing business activity by non-Hindus within the premises of temples may be justified considering the religious sentiments involved, stretching it to fairs in which an entire village or town usually participates is wrong and far-fetched. In any case, no vigilante groups should have the power to impose such a ban. They are only trying to drive a wedge between the two communities. The government’s failure to initiate action against these anti-social elements amounts to extending support to them. Primary and Secondary Education Minister B C Nagesh has wrongly defended the culprits suggesting that the posters were a reaction to the protests against the hijab judgement.</p>.<p>Most temples come under the Muzrai department. The government cannot discriminate among religions while awarding tenders for shops or implementing other projects. Even more than the ban per se is the question of how the government has allowed vigilante groups to take the law into their hands. Only the government machinery can enforce the ban, not partisan groups. Right-wing Hindutva groups are trying to socially exclude the minorities and cut them off from the mainstream, including their livelihoods, under various pretexts. This has become stronger and the atmosphere in the state has become more vitiated under the present government. It will do harm to the state both in the short term and the long term. </p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>
