By TwoCircles.net Staff reporter,
Mumbai: The Republican Party of India (A), a partner in the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, has organised a rally here to protest the blanket ban on consumption and selling of beef in the state after the recently enacted Maharashtra Animals Preservation (Amendment) Act.
The party has also announced that it will be meeting President Pranab Mukherji to apprise him of the unemployment caused due to the beef ban in the state.
RPI activists, farmers and beef traders protest outside collector office in Badra East, Mumbai on May 19, 2015 [Courtesy : UrduTimes]
The protest rally on Tuesday, May 19 was organized from Mhada office at Bandra to the collector office, which then turned into a dharna outside the collector’s office in Bandra East. Hundreds of RPI (A) workers, beef merchants and workers participated in the rally.
Party president Ramdas Athawale, who participated in the protest, demanded that the ban be lifted as it has rendered thousands of people unemployed. He said that the ban is mostly affecting the farmers and the Quresh community.
“When cow slaughtering is banned in the state since 1976, there was no need to extend the ban to ‘gauvansh’ that includes bulls and bullocks. The ban should be lifted as it is affecting farmers and beef trade workers,” he said.
“We are an ally of BJP. It doesn’t mean we will close our eyes and let the government do injustice to the minority community. People are tired of being unemployed. They want their work to be restored. On the other hand, farmers can do nothing but watch helplessly as they are not allowed to sell the old cattle to slaughter houses,” said Athawale.
After announcing that his party delegation would meet President Mukherji to discuss repercussions of the beef ban, he said, “If the ban is not lifted, we will intensify our protest and launch a ‘jail bharo’ agitation.”
The protesters submitted a memorandum to the Collector demanding lifting of the ban on the slaughter of bulls and bullocks in the state.
RPI had extended its support to the BJP during the Maharashtra assembly polls in October last year but soon after enactment of beef ban bill in March, it openly cleared its stand against beef ban and opposed it terming it to be against the interests of farmers and beef traders.