HP Minister Goes Yogi Way, Tells Eateries to Show ID: Cong Govt Faces 2 Crises

There's a Hindutva surge in Himachal Pradesh and elements within HP Congress are trying to appease these forces.

(Vikramaditya Singh said eateries in Himachal Pradesh will now have to display owners' name)

(Vibhushita Singh/The Quint)

(Reporting on communalism and hate crimes is a key focus area in The Quint's reportage. You can become part of this by supporting our Uncovering Hate project.)

The Congress government in Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday, 25 September issued orders that eateries in the state would now have to display the owners' names.

The announcement was made by the state's Public Works Department and Urban Development Minister Vikramaditya Singh.

"In Himachal Pradesh too, every eatery and fast-food cart will have to display the owner’s ID, so customers don’t face any sort of inconvenience. To this effect, an order has been passed in a meeting of the Urban Development and Municipal Corporation. Jai Shri Ram," he wrote on Facebook.

'Yogi Model' vs 'Mohabbat ki Dukaan'

This is similar to the directive issued by the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand governments during the Kanwar Yatra earlier this year. However, it was stayed by the Supreme Court after a group of petitioners approached it, citing that it can be used to discriminate on the basis of religion and caste.

In a way, the Himachal rule goes a step further than the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand rules because the latter were only temporary measures for the duration of the Kanwar Yatra. On the other hand, the Himachal rule is a permanent one.

The rule has sparked widespread criticism with many accusing the Congress of following pro-Hindutva policies like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

"It is appalling that the Congress government in Himachal chooses to follow in the steps of Adityanath in UP," activist Harsh Mander wrote on X.

Taking a dig at Rahul Gandhi's 'Mohabbat ki Dukaan' slogan, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi chief Prakash Ambedkar wrote, "Both the BJP and the Congress are 'Nafrat ki Dukaan'."

Former Chhattisgarh Deputy CM and senior Congress leader TS Singh Deo said, "I do not agree with the Himachal government's decision. I saw a video on social media showing crosses being marked above the shutters of minority-owned shops, indicating a boycott. This is condemnable."

According to reports, the Congress high command has summoned Vikramaditya Singh for an explanation. The HP government later clarified that this was Vikramaditya's proposal and no such decision had been taken by the government.

However, there is more to the controversy than this rule alone. This is only a symptom of two larger crises that exist in HP: the rising tide of violence against "outsiders" in Himachal Pradesh and a crisis within the Himachal Congress.

Violence Against Muslims and Sikhs on the Rise in Himachal Pradesh

Violence against 'outsiders', especially Muslims and Sikhs coming from other states, has also been on the rise in Himachal Pradesh, and so far, the Congress government has been struggling to contain it.

• In March this year, a Sikh tourist from Phagwara in Punjab, Navdeep Singh, was beaten to death in Bhagsunag near Dharamshala after a dispute with locals.

• In June, shops owned by Muslims were attacked in Nahan in Sirmour district. Many Muslim shopkeepers are said to have fled from there as a result.

• In the same month, a Punjabi Sikh NRI couple were attacked by a mob in Dalhousie. Though the police denied a hate crime angle, the couple say they were beaten for being from Punjab.

• In June again, an ASI with UT police, Paramjit Singh, was roughed up by locals and even Himachal police personnel in Dalhousie. This was right after Kangana Ranaut was slapped by a CISF constable in Chandigarh airport. "You attack our MP and expect us to welcome you here," locals allegedly told Paramjit Singh.

• In September, a Muslim shopkeeper was attacked in Solan. Hindutva outfits also came and marked Muslim-owned shops in the city.

Check out The Quint's Hate Crime Tracker that maps communal incidents across the country.

Crisis in the Himachal Pradesh Congress

Given the rising tide of Hindutva and increasing hate against "outsiders" in Himachal Pradesh, many within the state Congress want to appease these elements.

For instance, the protest by Hindutva groups against a mosque in Shimla, received some support from sections within the Congress.

In that context, Rural Development Minister Anirudh Singh even spoke out openly against "the need to check entry of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis" into Himachal Pradesh. These are terms which are commonly used by Hindutva outfits as a dog-whistle against Indian Muslims.

What is clear is that CM Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and the Congress high command do not have control over a sizable section of the Himachal Congress.

The party presently has 40 MLAs against the BJP's 28. But it is not clear how many of these MLAs remain loyal to CM Sukhu. A sizable chunk is also loyal to PCC chief Pratibha Singh and her son Vikramaditya Singh.

The BJP is adopting a "wait and watch" game and wants to see how the crisis in the state pans out.

"We are not in touch with anyone in the Congress. But if people want to join the BJP because they are feeling suffocated in the Congress due to their beliefs, our doors are open," a BJP functionary from Himachal told The Quint.

The BJP, however, has supported the order on eateries issued by Vikramaditya Singh. They had earlier supported Anirudh Singh during the mosque controversy as well.

The BJP's calculation is that if the Congress high command takes drastic action against Vikramaditya Singh, matters could escalate as the move does have some popular support. And the stability of the Congress government in the state would come under serious strain.