Gujarat’s Rajkot Civic Body banned the sale of meat to “respect” Hindu festival

The Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) has banned the sale and storage of Non-veg including meat, fish, mutton, and even eggs. All abattoirs are to be shut on four Mondays in the month of Shravan as well as on the Hindu festival of Janmashtami, which are falling between August 1 and August 22 within the municipal body’s jurisdiction for “respecting the sentiments of Hindus”.

Municipal Commissioner Amit Arora said, “Because of the upcoming ‘Mondays of the month of Shravan,’ on 01, 08, 15, 22 August as well as on ‘Janmashtami’ falling on 19 August, it is hereby ordered that all slaughterhouses falling in the jurisdiction of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation shall remain closed as well as sale and storage of meat, fish and mutton shall remain prohibited on these days.” Indian Express reported.

Rajkot’s civic body said that such notification issues every year and directed concerned agencies to ensure strict implementation and warned violators of action under the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporation Act, 1948. The municipal commissioner’s notification referred to a letter from the urban development and urban housing department from 1985 by the state government.

On the meat ban, Rajkot Mayor Pradeep Dav Monday said, “The RMC is merely following the orders of the state government. On Mondays of the month of Shravan, Hindus take out processions and organize religious festivals. Meat and slaughterhouses can hurt their religious sentiments and therefore, these establishments are ordered to shut down these days. We ask these establishments to remain shut during Paryushan also as ahimsa (non-violence) is one of the tenets of Jainism.”

It is not the first time that any Gujarat Municipal corporation banned meat, Rajkot, Vadodara, and Junagadh municipal corporations took this action last year too, and the action was endorsed by the BJP minister. As per the RMC rules, strict actions will be taken against the violator of the order. It seems like after Rajkot, Gujarat’s other districts and municipalities such as Ahemdabad, Surat, Vadodara, etc. will also implement such rules as some of them did last year.