Strongly condemning the economic boycott of Muslim traders from temple fairs in Karnataka, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLC (Member of Legislative Council) Adagur H Vishwanath called it a sorry state of affairs. Questioning what would happen if Indian citizens working abroad in Muslim-majority nations were subject to a similar boycott, he said, “No religion has said such things – to not include this or that person. The government must intervene. I don't know why the government is mum over this issue. Are they (Muslim traders) not Kannadigas?”
“How many of our people are there in England and America? So many of our people are working in different countries across the world, particularly working in Muslim countries. If all of this comes to a conclusion, what do we do, where do we go? What insanity is this?” asked Vishwanath, who is a former veteran Congress leader having been with the party for nearly four decades, before switching to the JD(S) in 2017 and later joining the BJP in 2019.
“The Muslims of this country stayed back here after the partition of India and Pakistan. They didn’t go with Jinnah, we must think about this. They stayed back in India, they’re Indians. Without thinking things through, to say Muslims can’t do business here … what is all this? This is a sorry state of affairs,” he said. When asked what would happen if the government doesn’t take up the issue, he said, “Then the people will take it up, who am I?”
Senior BJP leader & MLC AH Vishwanath speaks Ban on Muslim traders in Karnataka. Slamming politicians who are using religion for political gain, he questioned the state govt if they are in a position to provide jobs to NRIs if Muslim countries start sending them back. pic.twitter.com/KsIG57PlpU
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“If people’s basic needs can’t be met, if they can’t earn a living to buy food, then throw away your democracy, your religion and caste. What use are these things if people can’t eat?” Vishwanath asked.
Amidst reports of some temples in coastal Karnataka not allowing non-Hindus to do business at temple fairs, the BJP government on March 23 told the state Assembly that only Hindus can participate in the auctioning of stalls and setting up of shops, citing rules from the Karnataka Hindu Religious Institutions and Charitable Endowments Act in 2002. The move has been condemned as discriminatory and unconstitutional.
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