After slogan row, village panchayat mandates 'outsiders' to get nod to run businesses

A village panchayat in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district has decided not to allow people from other states to run their businesses without its permission, officials said, a move coming days after a row over anti-India slogans raised by a UP family.

The decision was taken by the gram panchayat of Trimbak village under Malvan taluka of the coastal district, located around 500 km from Mumbai, an official said on Wednesday.

In order to convey the decision and publicise it, the gram panchayat has put up banners at various places in the village, he said.

The banners have messages, which say people from other states who want to do small business in Trimbak, like dealing in scraps, selling vegetables, hawking their wares or street vending, are advised to meet the village head or gram panchayat officials.

After obtaining due permission, they will be allowed to do business or roam in the village to sell their materials and other items, the official said.

The gram panchayat will not allow hawkers or street vendors from other states to enter the village and operate their business if they do not have the required permission. Strict action will be taken against persons doing their business without nod from the village head or gram panchayat, he said.

A senior police official confirmed that Trimbak's gram panchayat, an elected village-level body, has taken such a decision.

A gram panchayat has the authority to formulate rules for the betterment of the village under its jurisdiction, he emphasised.

''The decision has been taken to avoid any untoward incident and not to target any community,'' the senior official said.

The move comes days after a scrap dealer hailing from Uttar Pradesh and his wife were arrested and their teenage son was detained by police in Malvan town for allegedly raising anti-India slogans during the February 23 India-Pakistan cricket match of the Champions Trophy in Dubai.

Local civic authorities later razed a shop taken on rent by the family, saying it was built illegally. Another shop belonging to the man's elder brother was also demolished by municipal council authorities.

Shaken by the action of civic authorities, the scrap dealer's family is considering leaving the coastal town.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)