Global fashion giants fret over cow crackdown

CHENNAI: The Madurai bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday stayed for four weeks the operation of new central government rules on cattle trade.

The court issued notice to the central government asking it to file a reply within four weeks.

The central government’s May 23 notification governing sale of cows and buffaloes — and their slaughter — has evoked strong protests from political parties in Tamil Nadu.

In Tripura, the Left Front government said it will not implement the new cattle trade and slaughter rules as it is against the interests of the people.

“The new cattle trade and slaughter rules framed by the central government are against the interest of the people. We will not carry out the new rules,” Tripura’s Agriculture and Animal Resource Development Minister Aghore Debbarma said.

“A large section of people, specially those from the Dalit community, are engaged in the business of cattle skin. Farmers engaged with cattle business, minorities, those who depend on cattle for their source of protein would be directly affected,” CPM Tripura state secretary Bijan Dhar told reporters.

“We have a federal democracy in our country. The central government cannot do many things without involving the states. The BJP government unilaterally framed this important cattle trade and slaughter rules,” he said.

Dhar, also a CPM central committee member, said the central government without studying the gravity of the impact of the new cattle trade and slaughter rules enforced from a “communal view point”.

In Delhi meanwhile, BJP youth workers staged a protest against the Congress and demanded “public apology” from party President Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi over the butchering of a domestic ox by its youth leaders in Kerala.

Hundreds of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) workers demonstrated outside the Congress office headquarters in central Delhi and alleged that its workers had hurt the sentiments of over 100 crore Hindus across India. Police had to use NEW DELHI: Indian exporters were scrambling on Tuesday to assure global clients like Zara and Giorgio Armani their shipments would arrive despite a government crackdown on cattle slaughter which threatens the lucrative leather industry.

The government last week declared a nationwide ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter, startling major fashion labels who buy billions of dollars worth of leather from India every year to make high-end shoes, handbags and jackets.

“They’re calling and writing e-mails and asking what the consequences of this will be, and I don’t know what to tell them,” water canons to disperse the crowd.

“Congress has hurt the sentiments of crores of Hindus by killing the ox in full public view,” said BJYM leader Sunil Yadav, who led the protest.

He also said those involved in the butchering of cattle must be jailed.

A Hindu leader, Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati too said Mohammad Zia Nafees, whose Kolkata-based business sells finished leather to Zara and Marks & Spencer for shoes.

The controversial ruling effectively chokes off India’s supply of beef and leather.

India is the world’s second-largest producer of footwear and leather garments and sold $13 billion worth of goods last year — nearly half to clients abroad who are growing skittish, industry groups say.

“The industry is in panic mode at the moment. We have been handed a death certificate by the ruling Modi government,” Imran Ahmed Khan from the Council for Leather Exports said. on Tuesday slammed a beef party held by Congress workers in Kerala and said he has spoken to Congress VicePresident Rahul Gandhi about it.

The Shankracharya is known to be close to the Congress on political matters. He said that he had been told of the disciplinary action taken against the errant Congress workers.