Mutton traders in the city have moved the Bombay High Court against the ban, saying it discriminates against their right to a livelihood. Meat shops were open on Thursday, on the first of a four-day ban, but the government-run slaughterhouse was shut.
“An eight-day straight ban can’t be a formula. Mumbai is a modern city,” the court observed yesterday.
The ban on slaughter and sale of meat in Mumbai has been imposed because of a Jain festival of fasting, Paryushan. After yesterday, the ban will be in force on three more days, Sunday, September 17 and 20.
The BJP wants the ban extended to eight days, but the Sena says it will ensure meat is openly sold and eaten on the days of the ban.
“All demands have to be reasonable; asking for an eight-day ban is stupidity,” said the party’s Sanjay Raut. “Jains should not become fanatical, it will not be good for you,” he also said.
The meat ban during the Jain fast was introduced in 1994 by the then Congress government. Ten years later, the two-day ban was extended to four days, but has never really been implemented, officials say.
Like Opposition parties the Congress and the NCP, the Shiv Sena has alleged a political move by the BJP to appease the Jain community in Mumbai, with an eye on elections to the civic body in 2017.
BJP-ruled Rajasthan and Gujarat too have ordered a temporary meat ban for the Jain festival. In Jammu and Kashmir the high court wants a ban on sale and purchase of beef imposed.
Rajasthan government ordered ban on sale of meat and fish on September 17, 18 and 27 on account of festivals, including that of Jains.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the High Court ordered the police to strictly enforce a ban on the sale of beef, triggering angry reactions from residents, politicians and also separatist groups.
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