A group of local BJP leaders and workers on Sunday vandalised a store of the iconic Karachi Bakery in Shamshabad on the outskirts of Hyderabad in protest against its name derived from a city in Pakistan. The protesters argued that the name was unacceptable, particularly in light of the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan.
A group of BJP leaders and supporters, wearing saffron scarves and armed with sticks and the national Tricolour, vandalised the storefront of the bakery, demanding a name change. The bakery has been synonymous with Hyderabad for decades. Although police personnel were deployed at the store, they were outnumbered by the vandals. Raising anti-Pakistan slogans and shouting “Bharat Mata ki Jai”, the protesters repeatedly struck the signage with sticks and damaged it. Reinforcements arrived from the nearby Rajiv Gandhi International Airport police station and dispersed the protesters.
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For the past few days, Karachi Bakery stores have put up billboards at their storefront, proclaiming that they are “proudly Indian” and pointing out that the bakery, founded in Hyderabad in 1953, is an Indian brand. “Our name is a part of our history, not our nationality,” said the signage with an appeal to support them. The bakery had even put up Tricolour flags beside their signage to indicate their Indian heritage. This was not the first time the bakery faced such an attack, though it was the first time it happened in Hyderabad, where its history is widely known. Just a few days ago, right-wing protesters vandalised a Karachi Bakery branch in Visakhapatnam.
The founder, Khanchand Ramnani, was a Sindhi who migrated from West Pakistan to Hyderabad during the Partition. He named the small bakery he started in Moazzam Jahi Market in 1953 after the city he had left behind. The iconic bakery, known for its fruit biscuits, Dilkhush (a sweet bread with filling), and plum cakes, is part of Hyderabad’s heritage.
