Right-wing outfits have called for a boycott of Muslim traders during the religious fair at Subramanya Swamy temple in Bengaluru’s VV Puram. Vishva Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal submitted a memorandum stating the same on November 29 to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Commissioner, Tushar Giri Nath, and Deputy Commissioner of Police for South Bengaluru, P Krishnakant.
Similarly, Hindu Jagran Vedike called for a ban on non-Hindu traders at Koppal's Anjanadri temple. The group has put posters calling for the ban around the temple. “Around Anjanadri mountain, which is a sacred Hindu religious site, many religious paraphernalia are sold and other businesses such as hotels run. In such a holy area, only Hindus should be allowed to trade,” the Vedike’s letter, submitted to Koppal’s District Magistrate read. The letter also alleged that Muslim traders in the area have been instigating terror in the guise of doing business and demanded that they should be banned.
Calls for economic boycott of non-Hindus from Hindu religious sites are not isolated events but have recurred with several instances. VHP and Bajrang Dal in Kodagu had also put up similar posters prohibiting non-Hindus from setting up shops at Harihar Subramanya temple’s upcoming fair on November 29 and November 30. An aggressive campaign was earlier launched by Hindutva groups in coastal Karnataka to boycott Muslim businesses at temple fairs. Banners had been put up in Mulki town in March which warned that Muslim traders will not be allowed to set up stalls at the Bappanadu temple fair. Muslim traders were also barred from putting up stalls at the annual Mari Pooje festival in Kaup, near Mulki at the Bappanadu temple fair.