A local seer carries out ‘inspections’ despite a Supreme Court order against the display of the owners’ names
NEW DELHI/ MUZAFFARNAGAR —Giving two hoots to the Supreme Court directives against forcing shopkeepers along the Kanwar Yatra route in Uttar Pradesh to display their identity, a local seer in Muzaffarnagar persists in his campaign to identify the vendors based on their religion.
In the chilling echo of vigilante moral policing, hotel and eatery workers along the pilgrimage route were allegedly subjected to degrading “religion checks” over the past week. Multiple eyewitnesses and local media reports confirm that the staff — primarily male — were forced to take off their pants to “prove” their religion by followers of Swamy Yashveer Maharaj, a controversial seer linked to earlier acts of public vigilantism.
The incidents occurred along NH-58, a major artery for Kanwar pilgrims heading to Haridwar. Several hotels and roadside dhabas catering to pilgrims were reportedly raided by saffron-clad men affiliated with Yashveer Maharaj’s “Bharatiya Sanatan Suraksha Dal,” a loosely organised outfit known for its aggressive majoritarian campaigns.
Videos that surfaced online — many since deleted or taken down for graphic content — show frightened workers being surrounded and heckled by groups of men, who demand they drop their trousers to prove they are circumcised — a crude and invasive test falsely equated with identifying Muslims.
‘Check Their Religion’ Screams
A Muslim worker at one such dhaba, spoke to a reporter under the condition that his location be withheld for safety reasons. “They came in the name of the yatra, but were shouting, ‘Muslimon ko bhagao (Drive out the Muslims).’ Then they demanded to inspect us,” he said, his voice shaking. “They made us undress. They said if we were Muslims, we were unfit to serve food to the Kanwariyas.”
Another staffer at a hotel on the highway said he was slapped and threatened with public flogging when he refused to comply. “They were livestreaming the whole thing. For them, this was a show of power. For us, it was humiliation,” he said.
At least seven such incidents have been reported from different locations in the Khatauli and Purkazi areas of Muzaffarnagar in the last five days.
Seer at the Centre of Controversy
Swamy Yashveer Maharaj, who heads a local math near Bhopa, is no stranger to controversy. Known for his inflammatory speeches and social media videos warning against “love jihad” and “Islamic infiltration,” he had previously called for a “Kanwar Corridor cleansing” campaign during a sermon last month.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, he justified the campaign: “This is our holy pilgrimage. We will not allow our dharma to be insulted by people who don’t believe in our gods but serve food to our pilgrims. This is not discrimination. It is preservation.”
His supporters argue that Kanwar pilgrims, who observe strict religious discipline during the yatra, should not be “defiled” by being served by non-Hindus.
Despite growing outrage, local police have downplayed the incidents. Muzaffarnagar SP (Rural) Brijesh Singh reportedly old the media, “We have not received any formal complaints so far. No such stripping or harassment has been confirmed. These may be isolated incidents, possibly exaggerated.”
However, rights groups accuse the administration of deliberate inaction. “There’s no FIR, no arrests, despite clear visual evidence,” said Kavita Krishnan, a social activist and former CPI(ML) leader. “This is not just vigilantism; this is caste-community-based terror in broad daylight.”
The Muzaffarnagar district magistrate’s office issued a one-line clarification late Tuesday evening: “All stakeholders are advised to respect religious sentiments during the Kanwar Yatra.”
Political Silence
With the Kanwar Yatra having gained increasing political visibility over the years, most major parties have maintained silence on the issue, fearing backlash from the dominant Hindu vote bank in western Uttar Pradesh.
However, AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi condemned the incidents, calling them “Taliban-style humiliation on Indian soil.” In a post on X (formerly Twitter), he wrote, “Stripping men to prove their religion is not Hinduism. It’s naked fascism. Where is the government? Where is the Constitution?”
The National Human Rights Commission has reportedly sought a preliminary fact-finding report from local authorities, though no timeline has been set.
This is not the first time religious profiling has surfaced during mass Hindu pilgrimages. In 2022 and 2023, several reports emerged of Muslim vendors being forcibly removed from outside temples during Hindu festivals in Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand. What sets this incident apart is the sheer personal violation and the symbolic violence of enforced undressing — echoing dark chapters from history.
