Overview

• The Supreme Court issued notices to Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand over directives requiring food vendors along the Kanwar Yatra route to display QR codes revealing owner identities.
• A bench of Justices MM Sundresh and N Kotiswar Singh set a July 22 deadline for responses and will hear pleas by Prof Apoorvanand Jha and activist Aakar Patel.
• Petitioners contend that the QR code requirement circumvents last year’s stay on forced identity disclosures and infringes Articles 14, 15, 17, 19 and 21 of the Constitution.
• shwa HiHindu Parishad continues to distribute saffron “Sanatani” stickers marking vegetarian outlets as Muslim vendors report losing customers after their names are identified.
• State officials defend the QR code system as a public health and transparency reform meant to inform pilgrims about hygiene standards rather than to profile sellers.