On Friday, April 8, TOI reported that the Muslim vendors and businessmen met with Rinchen Lhamo, a member of the National Commission for Minorities, to lodge a complaint that the Muslim community is being targeted in Karnataka.
The meeting took place in the midst of a social media campaign warning a Hindu ice-cream shop owner in Mangaluru to remove the Halal certification from their products within a month or face a boycott.
After the message started doing rounds on social media platforms, the Muslim businessmen felt threatened and targeted. They approached the National Commission for Minorities seeking help.
During the meeting with officials at the DC office on Thursday, members of the Muslim community sought protection from Rinchen Lhamo.
The call for a ban on non-Hindu traders near Hindu temples atop Chamundi Hills in Mangaluru was raised, and it was argued that it was a ploy to marginalise them. They requested that the commission take serious note of it.
The Muslim vendors and businessmen told Rinchen Lhamo that some activists had approached the authorities, requesting that Muslim vendors on Chamundi Hills be prohibited.
There was also a campaign encouraging people not to purchase halal meat, they lamented.
“Some time ago, concerns were raised about hijab. The Muslim community is targeted on a daily basis, which has worried community members “They informed her. According to them, members of the community are closely associated with people of various faiths. They requested that the Commission direct the state government to provide protection to the state’s Muslim community.
It may be recalled that ever since the Muslim traders forced the Hindu traders to shut shops in protest against the Karnataka High Court’s order banning the wearing of hijab in educational institutions, the Hindu temple administrations have taken a strong exception to the participation of non-Hindus in the annual fairs. Multiple temple committees in Karnataka had announced that they would not lease shops on their temple premises to non-Hindus after some Muslim shopkeepers had joined the protests against the hijab verdict of the Karnataka High Court and shut down shops in the political call for a strike.
Following suit, members of Vishwa Hindu Parishad had also called for a ban on non-Hindu traders at Hindu shrines near Chamundeshwari temple at Chamundi Hill.
The Muslim businessman expressed apprehensions that they were being targeted in Karnataka following a spate of controversies on hijab, halal meat and the use of loudspeakers in mosques.
Over the last few months, the people of Karnataka have bravely resisted radical Islamists’ attempts to Islamize the state. We saw a glimpse of this recently when Kannadigas stood firm against the Hijab controversy in colleges and launched a campaign against Halal meat.
Hijab row
The hijab controversy in Karnataka gained momentum since the first week of January after eight Muslim girls were denied entry to classes in a Udupi college because they were wearing hijab. The college authorities had informed that the hijab was not a part of the uniform dress code mandated for the students.
The Muslim girls, adamant about wearing hijab, then filed a petition in High Court seeking permission to attend classes in hijab. They stated that wearing the hijab was their ‘fundamental right’ granted under Articles 14 and 25 of the Indian Constitution and ‘integral practice of Islam’.
The controversy spiralled as Hindu students in Karnataka styled with saffron scarves around their necks and protested against Muslim girls continuing to wear hijab to the college. Tensions also prevailed at some educational institutions in Udupi, Shivamogga, Bagalkote, and other parts, as stones-pelting and violence were reported from various parts of the state.
Halal controversy in Karnataka
The Hijab controversy had barely subsided when the state got embroiled in a Halal controversy. A Hindu organisation started a nationwide agitation against Halal meat because it is inherently discriminatory against Hindu butchers and the proceeds of Halal almost seem like a Jiziya that Hindus need to pay. The meat is butchered after reciting the Islamic shahada, only Muslims are employed in the industry, and almost every major business has exclusively acclimatised itself to bow down to Islamic demands in the industry.
Owing to this, on March 28, the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti called for a boycott of halal meat as it launched a nationwide campaign demanding a ban on Halal products.
Karnataka tightens rules on the use of loudspeakers
Recently, the Bengaluru police have issued notice to at least 310 entities, including places of worship, commercial establishments, and industries, for defying court orders and using loudspeakers during banned hours between 10 pm and 6 am.
Last year, in April 2021, the Karnataka High Court had pulled up authorities for their failure to regulate the illegal use of loudspeakers at places of worship.
This drive against the illegal usage of loudspeakers comes amidst a growing call by Hindu activists and organisations to enforce a ban on the use of loudspeakers in mosques. Loudspeakers have sprung up across Islamic places of worship, which are used to blare Azaan, the call to prayer, five times a day.
