On Tuesday, a hotel refused to allow a married couple to check in after looking at their identification cards.
The reason being was the man is Muslim while his wife is Hindu, Shafeek Subaida Hakkim and Divya D.V., are a married couple from Kerela who visited Bangalore for work. The couple reached Olive Residency on Annipuram Main Road in Sudhama Nagar and asked for a room and were sternly rejected.
Shafeek spoke to a news channel and said, “He noted the names in the register and then realized that I am a Muslim, while my wife is Hindu. He asked us if we were married as we follow different religions. When I confirmed that we were in fact married, he refused to give us a single room saying that it is not acceptable for a Muslim and a Hindu to stay together.”
Shafeek continued to question the receptionist and explained, “The receptionist just kept saying that since I am a Muslim and Divya is a Hindu, he could not give us a room together. It was already 7 A.M., and Divya had an interview at 2 P.M. We were helpless and shocked. We could not waste any more time arguing with the man and decided to look for a room in another hotel.”
He further added, “I told the receptionist that I would file a police complaint and yet he refused to budge. We did not have time so we have not filed a complaint with the police yet.”
News channels rushed to the hotel when the news broke to question the receptionist who had an odd justification for not allowing an interfaith couple to stay.
When the receptionist was questioned he admitted to being the one who refused the couple to stay at the hotel. He also said, “His ID said Shafeek, her ID said Divya. That’s why I got suspicious, and I told them I wouldn’t give them a room and sent them away.”
The receptionist went on to say, “We don’t give rooms to Muslims and Hindus who come together, because what if they go into the room and hang themselves… Why do we need that trouble.”
The news reporter was confused with his response and questioned him about why he was worried about suicide to which he said, “I’m not saying they’ll commit suicide because they’re a Hindu-Muslim couple. But ordinarily, in villages, it doesn’t happen. I grew up in a village. There, Hindus don’t get married to Muslim women, and Muslims don’t get married to Hindu women.”
He also said, “Also they didn’t have much luggage. They just had one bag each. The man had one bag and the woman had one bag. They didn’t have any large suitcases. That’s why I got suspicious and didn’t give them a room.”
