The Kanwar Yatra must return to its roots as journey of discipline – not domination

On July 8, some participants in the Kanwar Yatra vandalised an eatery in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzzafarnagar as they found onions in their meals – a vegetable that is taboo during the annual pilgrimage to Haridwar to carry back water from the Ganga.

Shortly after, a woman travelling on the Haridwar-Rishikul Highway was dragged by her hair and beaten with slippers because her scooter accidentally grazed a pot that contained holy water.

These were only two of several instances of violence by kanwariyas reported during this year’s edition of the pilgrimage, which started on July 11 and ended on July 23.

The exercise by devotees of the Hindu god Shiva is not supposed to be only a physical journey – it is intended to instill spiritual discipline too. The pilgrims are expected to abstain from alcohol and avoid arguments or violence.

However, as these incidents show, the Kanwar Yatra in recent years has increasingly become a theatre of aggression. Pilgrims, clad in saffron, once walked in solemn devotion. But today, some wield hockey sticks and trishuls. They are often accompanied by trucks studded with loudspeakers that announce their presence in a manner that some would find alarming, if not threatening.

?#WATCH | ? Decibel levels have shot up in the capital over the past...

Read more