New Delhi: A traders’ body in Uttarakhand’s Dharchula town has cancelled the registration of 91 shops run mostly by Muslims, after a young Muslim man from Bareilly who worked in a barber shop in the town left with two minor Hindu girls. Locals have been asked not to rent houses and shops to “outsides”, The Hindu reported, creating tensions in the area.
Mahesh Gabrayal, general secretary of the Dharchula Vyapar Mandal, said, according to The Telegraph, “The registrations of 91 shops were cancelled after consulting the local administration and their owners were asked to leave the area. Many of them have been luring our daughters.”
“A barber from Bareilly enticed two minor girls and took them away last month. Thereafter, we identified 91 shopkeepers who were doing business here illegally. They didn’t register with the Vyapar Mandal, which is mandatory in Uttarakhand,” he continued.
According to The Hindu, of the 91 shopkeepers whose registrations have been cancelled, about 85 are Muslim. However, The Telegraph reports that all these shops are owned by Muslims.
Gabrayal said the association had also decided to cancel the registration of all the traders who came here from other states before 2000. “A total of 175 businessmen from the town have been identified so far. They all belong to western Uttar Pradesh. Local youths will be able to start businesses and earn a livelihood if we remove the outsiders from here,” he said.
Men involved in luring the girls to leave town have been arrested, according to Deccan Herald. Two traders from Bareilly were arrested in February and charged under IPC sections of 363 (kidnapping), 376 (sexual assault), 354 (use of criminal force to outrage modesty of woman) and POCSO Act, Dharchula SHO Parvez Ali said.
The district administration has said action is being taken against those issuing the boycott call and shopkeepers complaining of harassment are being given protection. “We have registered an FIR against elements who forced the shop owners to shut their shops,” Pithoragarh district magistrate Reena Joshi said, according to Deccan Herald. “No unlawful activity will be allowed. Traders from outside doing business in the town will be given full protection.”
“We appeal to the people to maintain peace. The shopkeepers have raised some issues and we will discuss them with the leaders of their association soon,” Manjit Singh, sub-divisional magistrate of Dharchula, said, according to The Telegraph.
