Congress hits street over beef ban

From Our Correspondent

Itagar, June 9: The Congress in Aruchal Pradesh on Friday hit the street in protest against the Centre’s ban on sale of cattle for slaughter at livestock markets. Aruchal Pradesh Youth Congress (APYC) staged a rally in the state capital shouting anti-BJP slogans. Hundreds of protestors led by the youth brigade of the Congress, brought out the rally from Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan here which later culmited at Mithun Gate area in the state capital. “Khayenge Khayenge beef meat khayenge” (We will eat beef), “Humara sabzi gai meat” (For us beef is a vegetable) rent the air after the rally proceeded towards Raj Bhawan after it was stopped at Mithun Gate by security personnel on duty. The rally was also participated by Indian Youth Congress (IYC) secretary in-charge for North East Sarifa Rehman.

The Congress on the occasion also submitted a memorandum to state governor P B Acharya demanding the Centre to lift the ban immediately. “Being a major political party of the state, put our seal of consent and approval to immediately lift the ban on eating habits and slaughtering which in turn has created social and economic distress,” the memorandum read.

Later, talking to reporters Rehman said that the way the BJP government is acting is not at all democratic. “Modi is not a judge of some cooking show where one can decide what to cook and what to eat. Neither he, nor his government has the right to decide what we eat and cook in our households. Moreover, this is not the way of democracy,” said Rehman.

APYC president Jikke Tako while condemning the ban on cattle slaughter said, “We have different cultures and traditiol values in North East and Aruchal in particular. Our food habits are different as we are Scheduled Tribes. Eating meat is associated with our culture. We cannot eat ghee (butter) and dal. So let us eat what we like.” Mithun, beef and pork meat has a ceremonial place in the economic, social and cultural life of various indigenous tribes in the north east, he said.

Aruchal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu had also recently told a tiol news channel that he consumes beef and sees no harm in others doing the same.

BJP state president Tapir Gao too had substantiated Khandu’s claim stating that, the Centre or the BJP had never stopped anyone from eating meat in particular.

The Union Environment Ministry, through a notification had on May banned the sale of cows for slaughter. Since then, there have been widespread protests, especially in Kerala and West Bengal.

In Meghalaya, over 5,000 youth workers of the BJP quit the party on Wednesday last over restrictions on cattle sale and slaughter in animal markets.