Mumbai: National Herald, a publication associated with the Congress party, which has also been mired in a fraud-related court case, allegedly propagated negative sentiments against the Gujarati and Jain communities residing in Mumbai in an article. Published on October 23rd and written by Sujata Anandan, the Consulting Editor of this Congress-affiliated publication, the article referred to the dietary choices of Jains and Gujaratis in Mumbai as “food terrorism”.

Sharing her article on a social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Sujata Anandan wrote, “If you dislike the scent of fish and rice, you should return to Gujarat – Maharashtrians are asserting their claim to their own state.”

Go back to Gujarat if you don’t like the smell of fish and rice – Maharashtrians begin to reclaim their own statehttps://t.co/UgXZMnU9q9

— Sujata Anandan (@sujataanandan) October 24, 2023

In her piece titled ‘Dietary apartheid: Mumbai gets a taste of food terrorism,’ Sujata Anandan argued that fish and rice are integral to the diet of Maharashtrians, and they see no reason to alter their culinary preferences to accommodate later settlers, particularly Gujaratis who exhibit an aversion to the smell of fish.

In her article, she vilified the Gujarati community by recounting instances she labeled as “food terrorism” and accused Gujaratis and Jains in Mumbai of discriminating against Marathis based on their food choices. She recounted an alleged incident in a Mumbai suburb where Gujaratis reportedly engaged in aggressive behavior, including dumping waste at the doors of Maharashtrian residents. According to her, the majority of the society supported these actions, leading to the complete isolation of the Marathi family and their eventual eviction from the building.

Anandan also pointed out that this type of “food terrorism” traces back to the late 1980s when former Prime Minister Morarji Desai compelled the closure of a non-vegetarian restaurant in his building, arguing that the odors disturbed his peace.

Under the guise of advocating for the supposed rights of Marathis in Mumbai, Sujata Anandan’s real agenda appeared to be sowing division among Hindus based on caste and regional identities. She mentioned, “Social media posts by young Maharashtrians have been raging against the shethjis and bhatjis—Gujarati traders and priests—and calling to banish them from Mumbai and Maharashtra!” In her article, Former Maharashtra minister Jitendra Awhad of the Nationalist Congress Party also emphasized the original inhabitants of Mumbai, including the Kolis (fishermen), Agris (who contributed to the city’s development during British rule), and the upper-crust Pathare Prabhus (known for their cultural influence).

It’s worth noting that Sujata Anandan had previously faced legal action for her statements on a social media platform, where she falsely attributed Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s valor to the Mughals and made derogatory remarks about the armed forces associated with him. BJP leader Nitesh Rane filed a complaint against her at the Santa Cruz police station in Mumbai in response.

Now, she appears to be actively promoting animosity against Jains, Gujaratis, and other upper-caste Hindus by labeling their vegetarianism as “food terrorism.” In the guise of advocating for non-vegetarian sections of the Marathi community, she is contributing to a social rift among people from different communities living in Mumbai, highlighting specific castes and communities that consume vegetarian food as perpetrators of “food terrorism.”

In the latter part of the article, it takes on a further communal angle as it quotes Jitendra Awhad of the Nationalist Congress Party, who represents the assembly constituency of Mumbra, a predominantly Muslim area. He emphasizes, “When Muslims were denied housing by societies for similar reasons, we (Hindus) remained silent. Now that we are facing a similar situation, we understand the discomfort it causes. We are determined to prevent this discrimination from persisting.” DeshGujarat