Bengaluru’s civic body bans the sale of meat on Ram Navami
Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh has barred selling meat during Navratri and an unofficial ban is in place in south and east Delhi too.
Bengaluru’s civic body, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, on Friday issued a circular banning the sale of meat across the city on Ram Navami, which is on Sunday, reported The Indian Express.
“There will be a blanket ban on slaughterhouses, animal slaughter and the sale of meat on Sri Rama Navami,” the animal husbandry department of the civic body said in its order.
A civic body official told PTI that the ban on selling meat is imposed every year on Ram Navami. Besides this festival, the ban is also enforced on Gandhi Jayanti, Sarvodaya Day (Martyr’s Day) and some other religious events, the official said.
He added that there is a blanket ban on selling meats on at least eight days every year.
A similar ban, but for all the nine days of Navaratri, has been imposed in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad. Ram Navami is part of the Navaratri celebrations.
In Delhi too, mayors of south and east Delhi had asked their municipal corporations to shut meat shops during the nine-day Hindu festival. While the civic bodies have not yet issued official orders to this effect, the letters from the mayors have caused fear and uncertainty among meat shop owners.
The BBMP’s order also came amid calls by Hindutva organisations to boycott halal meat and products in Karnataka.
Halal is the Arabic word for “permissible”. Halal-certified products make it permissible for Muslims to consume the items. One of such products, the halal meat, which is sanctified by Islamic law, involves killing an animal by cutting the jugular vein, carotid artery and windpipe.
The Hindu Janajagruthi Samithi has been campaigning to ban halal-certified products, including meat, in Karnataka. It had said that animals are killed by offering them to Allah in this process, and it would be offensive for Hindus to offer the meat to their gods.
Earlier on March 29, Bharatiya Janata Party National General Secretary CT Ravi had claimed that halal meat was part of “economic jihad” by Muslims.
Hindutva organisations have also begun another campaign targeting state-owned Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation, Air India and others for offering halal-certified products. They have sought a ban on such products.
Also read:
- From fasting to bullying: How Hindu supremacists are using Navratri to target Muslims
- Would a Delhi Navaratri meat ban stand up in court?
