New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has put a complete ban on sale of non-vegetarian food, including eggs, fish, chicken, and meat, in the state’s Maihar town during the nine-day festival of Navratri from March 30 to April 7.
Meat shops will also remain closed on the occasion of five upcoming festivals in Bhopal and Indore, two of the biggest cities in Madhya Pradesh.
Maihar, where the sale of all non-vegetarian food items has been banned, houses the Maa Sharda temple, a Shaktipeeth for Hindus. Tens of thousands of devotees visit the town during the annual nine-day “Maa Shardey Chaitra Navrati Fair,” reported Press Trust of India.
Several BJP MLAs, including former party whip in the Lok Sabha and MP Public Works Department minister Rakesh Singh, had earlier demanded that meat shops in the state should be ordered to remain closed during Navratri.
In case of Bhopal and Indore, the BJP-governed municipal corporations in both cities the cities have ordered the closure of meat shops within municipal limits on Gudi Padwa and Chaiti Chand (30 March), Ram Navami (6 April), Mahavir Jayanti (10 April), and Buddha Purnima (12 May), reported New Indian Express.
While the Indore municipal corporation has ordered a four-day shut down of meat shops, the Hindutva group Hindu Rashtra Sangathan has demanded a nine-day ban and threatened to forcibly close shops which are open.
“Why does the order not apply to big restaurants, including major brands like KFC and McDonald’s? Why are only small shop owners targeted, while large restaurants remain unaffected?” opposition Congress leader Sach Saluja said, reacting to the ban on non-vegetarian food.
The administration has said that strict action will be taken against any shop found violating the order, including the cancellation of licenses.
In a separate incident in Damoh town, members from Hindutva outfits allegedly blackened the face of Chief Municipal Officer (CMO) Pradip Sharma after municipal staff stopped them from putting saffron flags on the town’s famous clock tower.
