Uproar after BJP workers threaten Muslim shopkeepers in UP’s Moradabad for selling meat in Hindu areas

A BJP worker in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad landed in trouble when he was seen threatening Muslim shopkeepers against selling meat or other non-vegetarian items in an area considered to be predominantly Hindu.

In a video that went viral, Sunita Sharma allegedly grabbed a microphone and warned Muslim shopkeepers not to sell meat in Hindu-dominated areas, as supporters chanted slogans like ‘Jai Shri Ram’. She also threatened to protest against renting shops to Muslims.

“No Muslim will be given a biryani shop in a Hindu area. We will protest, I am ready to attack. I learned that many shops are open today. How can Muslims run a shop in a Hindu majority area? Listen to me carefully, the shops must be vacated immediately,’ Ms Sharma can be heard saying in the viral video.

‘Minus Muslim’ society

Demanding action against the BJP leader, the opposition Congress said such instances would create an atmosphere without Muslims in many sectors of society, economy, with a broader agenda of making them second-class citizens. Such episodes are a system based on India’s core constitutional principles and rules, which give every citizen the right to sell non-vegetarian items in any part of the country, the party said, adding that Ms. Sharma was fueling communal polarization. and violating constitutional principles of equality and religious freedom.

“Recently, from Bareilly to Moradabad, we hear of an aggressive revolt against Muslims buying houses in Hindu society. These actions aim to create a ‘minus Muslim’ society, from shops to homes to society and the economy,” said Congress National Secretary Shahnawaz Alam.

The Samajwadi Party (SP) has said that the polarizing expression used by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has dragged down the speech by pushing the same narrative as ruling party workers. “If the Chief Minister uses divisive communal language, the lower level workers follow suit. The Moradabad viral video is an extension of the language from above,” Rajya Sabha MP Javed Ali Khan said.