Ranchi perforce goes vegetarian from today; VHP wants Maharashtra government to replicate new Gujarat law; Hindu organizations demand closure of all meat shops in Bengaluru
The Gujarat government on Friday amended the Animal Preservation Bill providing for stringent punishment for cow slaughter. Whereas the earlier law provided for punishment ranging from three to five years, the punishment now will be 10 years at the minimum to life term at the maximum. The offence has been made non-bailable.
Speaking in the Assembly during the debate, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said that while he was “not against any food” he wanted to turn Gujarat into a fully shakahari (vegetarian) state. Gujarat, he added, was a “unique state” which followed Mahatma Gandhi’s tenets of “truth and non-violence”.
“This is not a bill but a feeling of crores of Indians. It is my humble attempt to give voice to the cows being killed by butchers. A single drop of cow blood falling on earth pains Hindus”, said Minister of State for Home Pradeepsinh Jadeja while introducing the Bill in the House.
Adding that he was “proud to be a Hindu”, Jadeja turned to the visitors’ gallery to pay his respects to the “Hindu saints” around 300 of whom were there to witness the passage of the Bill.
The House however was bereft of the Opposition since the Speaker had suspended the Congress MLAs for creating a ruckus.
The punishment for illegal transportation of cows, beef or beef products in the new Act has been increased from three years to seven years. The vehicles used for transportation will be confiscated by the government and the penalty for the offence has been increased from Rs. 50,000 earlier to from Rs 1 lakh-5 lakh now.
Meanwhile, the Times of India reports that with the Ranchi Municipal Corporation having refused to renew the license of all meat shops until new regulations are drafted, Jharkhand’s capital city Ranchi will turn vegetarian from Saturday.
The chief executive officer of the city corporation, Prashant Kumar told the Times of India that all existing licenses expired on March 31 and renewals have been put on hold. “We are framing new regulations, following which all meat shops and slaughter houses for new licenses.
A separate report in Times of India says hardline Hindu organizations in Bengaluru want 1,700 meat shops in the city to close down. They are taking their cue from the BJP-ruled states of Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, MP and Jharkhand who following in the footsteps of the Yogi Adityanath-led UP government have been targeting slaughter houses and meat shops in their respective states.
Meanwhile VHP and Bajrang Dal activists from Vidarbha have called on the Maharashtra government to replicate the new Gujarat law making cow slaughter punishable with a life term.