Livelihoods at stake, Muslims feel the heat
Say state government should ensure that organised meat sector is not targeted
With the ongoing crackdown on slaughterhouses across Uttar Pradesh, Muslims, who form the bulk of the meat industry’s capitalists and workers, feel targeted in the state.
“The Bharatiya Janata Party [BJP] is taking revenge on Muslims after the victory in the state legislative assembly election. Only Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath knows what he has in his mind and why he is targeting the entire Muslim community,” Mohammad Asif Khan, whose chicken shop has been shut as a result of the crackdown, told Gulf News.
Many feel that the police is not raiding restaurants in Hindu-dominated areas. “Are the rules meant only for Muslims? It is not an attack on meat, it is an attack on the Muslim community as a whole. It is an attack on our livelihood. The meat industry gives employment to so many Muslims and the current government does not want that,” said Shakil Ahmad, owner of a licensed meat shop in Lucknow.
Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan yesterday demanded a ban on cow slaughter all across India and asked Muslims to stop eating beef. “Cow slaughter should be banned across the country. Why is it legal in Kerala and West Bengal but not in other states,” he said. Sirajuddin Qureshi, Chairman of Hind Group, which owns two buffalo meat-processing units in UP, said the state government should ensure that the organised sector is not targeted. “We are not bothered if the orders are just about shutting down illegal slaughterhouses. But there must be adequate clarity and communication so that the organised sector is not targeted,” he said.
Exports affected
Kanpur-based Rustam Foods is also feeling the heat. “The suppliers of buffalo meat are mostly Muslim and they are scared. They suffer harassment if they bring supplies to us. The government should ensure that the crackdown is fair and does not affect a particular community,” owner of Rustam Foods Saleem Qureshi told Gulf News.
The bulk of the buffalo meat processed in the state is exported. According to Agricultural and Processed Food Product Export Development Authority, the state has around 180 buffalo meat-processing units.
“It is clear that the meat industry is being targeted. No other industry is scrutinised by the state government so minutely,” secretary general of All India Meat and Livestock Exporters’ Association DB Sabharwall said.