Bengaluru's Street Vendors Federation Oppose Rule Against Non-Hindu Stalls At Temple Fair

Recently, several districts in Karnataka opposed non-Hindus to set up stalls around temples, which is a coordinated attack on the minority communities' livelihood in the state. In light of this, organisations working for the welfare of street vendors have vehemently opposed the controversial rule and asked the government to intervene in the matter and take the necessary action.

Among them, the 'Bangalore Pragatipara Beedhi Vyaparigala Sangha' and the 'Karnataka Beedi Badhi Vyaapari Sanghatanegala Okkoota' took the stand against it. However, the Basavaraj Bommai government stated that the 'ban' is by the rules under the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act, which was passed in 2002 under SM Krishna's regime in Karnataka.

Impacting Livelihood Of Street Vendors

According to The Hindu, many street vendors call the ban unconstitutional. The Okkoota's state president, CE Rangaswamy, told the news publication that the discriminatory mandate goes against the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act 2014 and the Karnataka Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Rules 2019. Both legislations allow vendors belonging to any religion to set up roadside stalls during fairs and temples.

"The Vishwa Hindu Parishad puts pressure on temple management committees and urges the state government to ban non-Hindu traders from setting up shops at temple fairs, annual festivals, and religious festivities. The statements clearly show that the BJP government is complicit in this demand of the Sangh Parivar," a spokesperson for one of the vendor welfare foundations told The New Indian Express. Also, the ban can negatively impact the livelihood of several traders, whose work will be affected by this communal rule that is gaining momentum each day.

Communal And Discriminatory

The recent weeks saw many Muslim establishments facing ire for their presence in the Hindu religious institutions. As reported by The News Minute, the Mahalingeshwara Temple in Karnataka's Puttur district has barred non-Hindus from taking part in an upcoming festival on April 20. "People who don't respect the law of the land and who kill the cows we pray and who are against the unity will not be allowed to do business," a hoarding at a temple in the Dakshina Kannada region said.

However, the complicated rules are now being defended by the current state government. While they tried 'distance' themselves from the controversy, they indirectly supported it by citing the rules allowing only Hindu institutions to set up shops around the temples or during religious fairs.

Also Read: No Hijab In Karnataka's Minority Institution Too, Govt Issues Order