The Hindu Janajagrithi Samithi, a right-wing organisation in Karnataka, announced that it will launch of a campaign against the purchase of Halal meat.
On Monday, the Hindu Janajagrithi Samithi, a right-wing organisation in Karnataka, announced that it will launch of a campaign against the purchase of Halal meat, claiming that it is “culled under Islamic customs and cannot be offered to Hindu gods.”
“There are a lot of meat sales during Ugadi (the Kannadiga New Year), and we’re initiating a campaign against Halal meat. Halal meat is first presented to Allah in Islam, and it cannot be offered to Hindu gods,” Mohan Gowda, a spokesperson for the Samithi, told Hindustan Times on Monday.
Ugadi is a Hindu holiday observed in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, during which meat is consumed the next day.
Halal meat, according to those who are familiar with Islamic rituals, is slaughtered by cutting the Jugular vein, carotid artery, and windpipe while saying “Bismillah,” which means ‘initiating with the name of Allah’.
read more: Shops Owned by Muslims Banned in Karnataka’s Temple Fairs
“When Muslims slaughter an animal, their faces are directed towards Mecca, and prayers are recited. Hindu gods cannot consume the same meat as humans. “We do not believe in hurting animals in Hinduism, and they are culled by (electric) shock,” Gowda remarked.
“Whether it’s Halal meat or Halal economy, the money generated from it is used for anti-national and terrorist operations. It would be comparable to a call and support for anti-national acts if Halal meat was used,” Gowda said, stressing that it was “illegal.”
The campaign is the latest in a long list of communal issues in the state, where the hijab debate has resulted in members of the minority population being barred from attending majority-run religious events.
On Thursday, the Samithi met with the Karnataka endowments department and submitted a memorandum stating that non-Hindus should not be permitted to open stores in temples under the department’s jurisdiction.
Right-wing organisations continue to enforce restrictions on Muslim vendors in regions like as Chikmagalur, Dakshina Kannada, and even Bengaluru, escalating tensions in the southern state.
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