NEW DELHI: India’s top court ruled on Monday that restaurants cannot be forced to display the names of their owners, suspending police orders in two northern states that critics had said could foment discrimination against Muslims.
Police in the two states, both ruled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist party, gave oral orders in at least two districts requiring restaurants to put the names of their owners on display boards.
Police said this would help avoid disputes for thousands of Hindu pilgrims who travel on foot to sacred sites during a holy month, many of whom follow dietary restrictions, such as eating no meat during their journey.
But a Supreme Court bench ruled on Monday that while restaurants could be expected to state the type of food they serve, including whether it is vegetarian, they “must not be forced” to display the name and identities of owners.
The court suspended orders by police in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand states and issued a notice to them seeking their response on petitions challenging the move.
More than a third of India’s 1.4 billion people are estimated to be vegetarian — the world’s largest percentage of people who don’t eat meat or eggs — as they follow diets promoted by groups within Hinduism and other religions.
Some vegetarians choose not to eat in restaurants that also serve meat and don’t rent out houses to meat-eating tenants.
A few allies of Modi and leaders of opposition parties had criticized the police orders, saying they feared they would deepen the communal divide and lead to Hindus avoiding restaurants employing Muslims.
Political foes accuse Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of targeting India’s roughly 200 million minority Muslims for electoral gains, which Modi and the BJP both deny.
“Such orders are social crimes, which want to spoil the peaceful atmosphere of harmony,” opposition Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav had said in a post on X, criticizing the police moves.
India court suspends order to restaurants to display owners’ names after anti-Muslim bias concerns
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India court suspends order to restaurants to display owners’ names after anti-Muslim bias concerns
Trump eyes anti-drug operations in Mexico, Colombia as Venezuela looms -Politico
- The Republican president also told Politico that he could extend anti-drug military operations to Mexico and Colombia
- “They’re weak,” Trump told Politico, referring to Europe’s political leaders
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump continued his threats of land strikes against suspected Venezuelan drug traffickers in an interview published on Tuesday as Trump administration officials prepared to brief top US lawmakers amid mounting tensions.
The Republican president also told Politico that he could extend anti-drug military operations to Mexico and Colombia, speaking in a wide-ranging interview that also took aim at Europe, including another call for Ukrainian elections and support for Hungary’s leader.
His comments, in an interview conducted Monday, reiterated much of his world view after releasing a sweeping US strategy roadmap last week seeking to reframe the country’s global role.
That National Security Strategy described a nation focused on reasserting itself in the Western Hemisphere while warning Europe that it must change course or face “erasure.”
“They’re weak,” Trump told Politico, referring to Europe’s political leaders. “They want to be so politically correct.”
“They don’t know what to do,” he added. “Europe doesn’t know what to do.”
In the Americas, Trump repeatedly declined to rule out sending American troops into Venezuela as part of an effort to bring down President Nicolas Maduro, saying he did not want to discuss military strategy: “I don’t want to rule in or out.”
Asked if he would consider using force against targets in other countries where the drug trade is highly active, including Mexico and Colombia, he said: “I would.”
Later on Tuesday, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio are expected to brief congressional leaders and the heads of Congress’ intelligence panels, sources told Reuters.
The briefing follows a months-long military campaign against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific that has come under intense scrutiny following a September 2 decision to launch a second strike on a suspected drug boat in the Caribbean.
“WEAK” EUROPE
A spokesperson for the European Commission, asked about Trump’s comments, defended the bloc’s leaders and said the region remained committed to their union despite challenges such as Russia’s war in Ukraine and Trump’s tariff policies.
“I will refrain from commenting, other than confirming that we are very pleased and grateful to have excellent leaders,” EU Spokesperson Paula Pinho said at a daily briefing for journalists, adding that they were “leading the EU with all the challenges that it is facing, from trade to war in our neighborhood, and who are showing that they can be united.”
In his interview, Trump again said he thought it was time for Ukraine to hold elections as the war nears its four-year mark. Ukraine is expected to share a revised peace plan with the US later on Tuesday, one day after hastily arranged talks with European leaders.
He also said he did not offer a financial lifeline to the government of ally Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who met with Trump last month at the White House.
“No, I didn’t promise him, but he certainly asked for it,” he said.
