As Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath of the Bhartiya Janta Party ordered names of owners on Kanwar Yatra stalls in India’s largest province of Uttar Pradesh in Kashmir, Muslims are feeding Hindu pilgrims during the ongoing Amarnath Yatra.

Kanvar Yatra is an annual pilgrimage of devotees of Lord Shiva — known as Kanvarias — to Hindu pilgrimage places of Haridwar, Gaumukh and Gangotri. The Uttar Pradesh government's new rule for the Kanvar Yatra route, however, has sparked widespread debate. According to the new directive, food shops are required to display the owners' names, leading to a variety of reactions.

Indian actor Sonu Sood weighed in on social media, stating, “There should be only one nameplate on every shop: ‘HUMANITY.’” Meanwhile, BJP member of Parliament and Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut responded: “Agree, Halal should be replaced with ‘HUMANITY.’”

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Indian screenwriter Javed Akhtar criticized the directive, comparing it to practices in Nazi Germany. The UP government has defended the rule, claiming it’s about respecting Hindu pilgrims’ faith during the Kanwar Yatra. The government has announced plans to crack down on shops selling Halal-certified products.

The order was paused this past Monday, but the move — to ensure no that pilgrims buy from Muslim-owned shops — has cast a pall on what is otherwise a wonderful event.

Meanwhile, in the conflict-ridden region of Kashmir, the ongoing annual pilgrimage to the Amarnath Cave shrine has fostered harmony between Hindu pilgrims and local Muslim communities.

Shabir Ahmad, a local Muslim in Jammu, eagerly anticipates the Amarnath Yatra each year. He sets up a stall to welcome pilgrims as they enter Kashmir, a region marred by decades of armed conflict between the Indian government and Kashmiri militants. He serves rajma chawal, a popular North Indian dish of boiled rice and kidney beans, to pilgrims, fostering friendships and emphasizing shared faith. Over the years, he has made friends and kept in touch with them.

“We may believe in different religions, but faith is universally the same,” Ahmad added.

Kashmir acceded to India at India’s independence in 1947 rather than merging with a Muslim Pakistan under a constitutional provision that allowed semi-autonomous rule in Kashmir. Part of Kashmir is ruled by Pakistan. Of the nearly 7 million people who live in the Kashmir Valley, 97% are Muslims. Over the past three decades, about 47,000 people have been killed in conflict, mainly between Indian security forces and Kashmiri militant separatists, according to government figures. In the 1990s, many Kashmiri Hindus fled for their lives and settled outside the valley.

Despite the turmoil in the region, Ahmad’s welcoming gesture, including garlanding Hindu pilgrims, counters the Indian media narrative of division and hate between Muslims and Hindus in India.

“We start a community kitchen for pilgrims every year just when the Amarnath pilgrimage starts,” Ahmad said. “The pilgrimage is a symbol of brotherhood. All of us Muslim friends come together to set up this community kitchen for Hindu pilgrims during the pilgrimage period and serve them dishes before they set out for the pilgrimage. They are our guests, and we welcome them heartily.”

Pilgrimage boosts local businesses

The pilgrimage is also an economic boon in an area with high unemployment. Jammu and Kashmir often top India in terms of unemployment. As of March 2023, Jammu and Kashmir’s unemployment rate was 23%, compared to the national average of just 8%.

Years following the killing of Kashmiri militant Burhan Wani in 2016 saw rising numbers of Kashmiri youth joining militant groups to fight the Indian security forces. In February 2019, a Kashmiri suicide bomber and member of a Pakistani terrorist group killed 40 Indian security personnel, further fueling a desire across India for a strong defense against Pakistan. Analysts believe this helped reelect Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party in 2019.

A quick bite at Ahmad’s stall is a ritual many Hindu pilgrims follow each year as a way to kickstart their annual pilgrimage to Amarnath.

“I am having an extremely good feeling after arriving here,” said Rajesh Pal, a pilgrim from Delhi. “I have come for the first time for the Amarnath pilgrimage. I am seeing that this Muslim man is serving food to Hindus. This gives the feeling of a paradise; people have just given disrepute to this place while the situation on the ground is absolutely opposite. I have gone to other places for pilgrimage to Uttarakhand and Kedarnath, but the love and affection that I received from the people here, I have never received anywhere.”

Symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity

Serving anyone along the way to Amarnath is a privilege for local Muslims. The pilgrimage has remained a symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity. A Kashmiri Muslim family discovered the cave more than 150 years ago. Local Muslims rescued hundreds of pilgrims in 1996 during a snowstorm that killed 200 people on the pilgrimage route.

Some 186 miles (300 kilometers) away, at the Yatra base camp in Ganderbal, thousands of Kashmiri Muslim shopkeepers and workers welcome Amarnath Yatris every year from all over the country. For many, the walk is also a chance to experience the famous Kashmiri hospitality. At every stop along the way, there are gatherings. Religion is not a barrier but a conversation. Pilgrims said the journey of faith is also about embracing the unknown.

Every year, tens of thousands of Hindus from across India trek the slippery mountains to catch a glimpse of an ice stalagmite in the cave at a height of 14,000 feet, where Lord Shiva is said to have dwelled. Most pilgrims who come from the hotter areas of India trek the mountains to pay respects at the cave.

Farooq Ahmad sells Kashmiri handicrafts to pilgrims at Baltal in North Kashmir’s Ganderbal district. He’s one of the many thousands of Muslim traders and shopkeepers who welcome Hindu pilgrims to the tourist town, a place known for its spectacular beauty.

“We exchange contacts and phone numbers with the pilgrims that help us to stay connected. We call each other on festivals. We have set up a shop continuously for the last 15 years,” he said. “Eighty percent of the business of local Muslims in district Ganderbal in Kashmir is dependent on this pilgrimage.”

The Amarnath Yatra gives a major push for reconciliation between Hindus from the rest of India and Muslims in Kashmir, acting as a catalyst for bringing together communities divided by violence. During the 1990s, hundreds of thousands of Kashmiri Hindus lost their homes and fled attacks by militants in Jammu and Kashmir.

While the pilgrimage has been a source of Hindu-Muslim unity — the holy cave was discovered by a Muslim devoted to Lord Shiva, a deity in the Hindu trinity — many Muslim businesses benefit from the tourism. The pilgrimage has also seen terrorist attacks in recent years, including an attack in 2017 that killed eight Hindu pilgrims.

Kashmir’s complex sociopolitical context

Kashmir was under a lockdown and government-imposed communications ban of varying levels for several months after August 2019, when the Indian government stripped the region of its semi-autonomy.

The pilgrimage was suddenly suspended days before the Modi-led government scrapped Article 370, the constitutional provision allowing Jammu and Kashmir’s semi-autonomy, last August. Days before that edict, the government had issued an advisory asking all tourists and Amarnath pilgrims to leave Kashmir. More than 20,000 tourists left the valley in just the first 24 hours.

Despite the backdrop of decades-long violence and political tension, the religious journey acts as a beacon of interfaith cooperation and economic support.

Each year, tens of thousands of Hindu pilgrims traverse the treacherous Himalayan terrain to reach the Amarnath cave. This journey is made possible by the support of local Kashmiri Muslims, who provide essential services and logistical support.

“We have come to Kashmir; there is no fear here,” said a pilgrim who only gave his name as Gopal. “It is such a good place. I pray that everyone gets a chance to visit this place. I am very happy with the people of Kashmir.”

Zaffar Iqbal is a journalist based in Kashmir, India. He has reported for 18 years on armed encounters, environmental issues, crime, politics, culture and human rights. He’s formerly the bureau chief of Jammu-Kashmir for NDTV.