Bhopal: The civic body in Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh has ordered the shop owners to display their names in front of their shops opened at the local fair being held on the occasion of the nine-day Navratri festival, commencing on Thursday, triggering a row with the Muslim religious leaders threatening to move the court to challenge it.
Ratlam Municipal Corporation has taken a decision at its revenue consultative committee meeting, held recently, that all the owners of the shops to be opened at the Ambedkar Ground in district headquarters of Ratlam on the occasion of Navratri are required to display their names in front of their shops, according the committee chief Dilip Gandhi.
Mr Gandhi said that the decision was taken to stop the middlemen from renting out the shops after winning the bid in the auction.
Businessmen of four states, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujrat open shops at the fair to sell their products. The century-old fair is very popular in the area and holds immense opportunities for businessmen to do business, according to Mr Gandhi.
All the shops to be opened at the fair are auctioned and the bidders set up their shops during the period.
However, it was seen that middlemen rent out the shops by winning the bid for them, depriving the genuine businessmen to open their shops on the occasion, according to Mr Gandhi.
According to a local civic body officer, it was clearly mentioned in the tender notice that the owners of the shops after winning the bid in the auction have to display their registration certificate and the ID proof in front of their shops.
Local Muslim religious leader Syed Asif strongly opposed the move and threatened to move the court to challenge the order.
“It will create chaos at the fair if such an order is executed. We will challenge it in the court”, he said.
