Kanwar Yatra Nameplate Row| Supreme Court Defers Hearing APCR's Plea Says ‘Better Matters to Take’
The Supreme Court on Wednesday deferred the hearing of a plea filed by the NGO Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) challenging the directives issued by the States of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand that require shopkeepers along the Kanwar Yatra route to display their shop names.
The matter will now be taken up in the last week of July after the Court’s summer vacation.
The Bench of Justice MM Sundresh and Justice Rajesh Bindal was hearing the matter when the Senior Counsel appearing for the petitioners sought time, informing the Court that certain applications had been served to them only the previous night.
Appearing for the State of Uttar Pradesh, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi referred the Court to the order passed on the first day of hearing, dated July 22, 2024. He read out a paragraph from the order which stated that while authorities could ensure that Kanwariyas were served vegetarian food under provisions of the Food Safety Act, such power could not be exercised arbitrarily by the police.
“This was the allegation,” Rohatgi submitted, adding that the State had already issued a proper order under the Food Safety Act in July 2024, thereby resolving the issue.
“That is all I want to say. Today we are in May 2025,” he said, arguing that the controversy no longer subsisted.
However, Senior Counsel for the petitioners disagreed, saying, “It is not as simple as my learned friend is saying.” He reiterated his request for time in light of the late service of documents.
Justice Sundresh, acknowledging the request, remarked that the Court would grant time and adjourned the hearing until after the summer break.
“There are better matters to take,” Justice Sundresh added.
Previously before Court
On July 26, 2024, the devotees had informed the Supreme Court that they were facing problems while his Kanwar Yatra as eateries named Maa Durga Dhaba and Maa Saraswati Dhaba were serving non-veg food also. Another devotee had submitted that many owners had removed the names previously displayed, post the court's stay order.
A day before, on July 25, 2024, the Uttar Pradesh government had told the Supreme Court that the directive issued by the Muzaffarnagar police to all food sellers to disclose nameplate was temporary in nature to ensure public safety, order, and transparency to protect sentiments of 'Kanwariyas' who take only 'sativik' foods during their 'yatra' in 'Shravan' month.
In an affidavit, the state government had maintained the press release was issued on July 17, 2024 solely in the interest of ensuring a peaceful completion of the Kanwar Yatra, in which more than 4.07 Crores of Kanwariyas participate annually.
It is to be noted that on July 22, 2024, the Apex Court had stayed the enforcement of directives issued by the state government of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, directing the shop owners along the Kanwar Yatra route to display their names.
Case Title: Association of Protection of Civil Rights v. State of Uttar Pradesh