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06 January 2021 10:45:18

Govt of India removes the word ‘Halal’ from its Red Meat Manual

Outcome of opposition from Hindus

  • The compulsion of religious fanatics done away .
  • Congratulations to the Central Government for taking cognisance of opposition by Hindus. The Government should not wait for opposition from Hindus to withdraw all anti-Hindu laws, rules and legislate laws to protect Hindu Deities, Dharma and society.

New Delhi – The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has removed the word halal from its ‘Red Meat Manual’ following protests from Hindu right-wing groups and Sikh organisations against ‘halal’ certification for products in the country.

The agriculture exports body clarified that this decision had no involvement of any government body. “It is a requirement by a majority of the importing countries. Halal certification agencies are accredited directly by respective importing countries. No government agency has any role in this,” it stated.

The APEDA, which functions under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, earlier had on its manual, “animals are slaughtered strictly according to halal method to meet the requirement of Islamic countries”. The manual now says, “the animals are slaughtered according to the requirement of importing country/importer”.

Sources in the body told the publication that the main reason behind the change was that using the word ‘halal’ made it seem like it was mandatory for all meat exports.

Other statements deleted from the manual are, “The animals are slaughtered by halal system under strict vigilance of (a) recognised and registered Islamic body as per the tenets of Islamic Shariyat. The certificate for halal is issued by the representative of registered Islamic body under whose supervision the slaughter is conducted in order to meet the requirement of (the) importing country.

Harinder Sikka, one of the main campaigners against the certification, told IE that this was just the first step. “We will continue our campaign. Halal meat is haram for us Sikhs,” he said. Sikh activists have also approached the government and the civil aviation ministry to stop serving halal meat on commercial flights in India.

What do these changes in the Red Meat Manual by APEDA mean?

Essentially, the changes in the manual are to ensure that the wording is not misconstrued to mean that the government of India mandates the Halal method in any way, which demands the hegemony of Muslims.

It is a fact that importing countries are mostly Islamic countries and mandate that the meat be cut, cleaned, packaged etc in the Halal manner and thus, it is impossible for the government to do away with the Halal method of slaughter itself for the foreseeable future.

When the manual had the word ‘Halal’ in it, it was entirely possible to dismiss even the possibility of selling or exporting Jhatka meat, since the manual provided a loophole to exclusively stick to the Halal method of slaughter. It also gave the impression that a secular country is open to endorsing rigid religious practices as mandated by Islamic clerics and associations. This is not to say that the change in the wording itself can break the hegemony of the Halal cartel, however, it is essential to provide a window to Hindus to make the changes they wish to.

Halal method of slaughter: A method that makes Hindus its hostage and promotes Islamic hegemony

It is important to note that Halal is not just a dietary preference but a method that imposes Islamic supremacy on those who don’t follow the faith.

Halal can only be performed by a Muslim man. Thus, non-Muslims are automatically denied employment at a Halal firm. There are certain other conditions that must be fulfilled that makes it quite clear that it is intrinsically an Islamic practice. Guidelines are available at the official website of a certification authority of Halal in India which makes it clear that non-Muslim employees cannot be employed in any part of the slaughtering process.

Thus, it’s quite apparent that when a person demands that he be served only Halal meat, he isn’t merely exercising a diet preference but he is also playing a part in deciding who is involved in the process of slaughtering the animal and labelling it. Furthermore, Muslims are barred by their scriptures from consuming non-halal food. Thus, when a Muslim specifically demands Halal meat, it’s an explicit instance of them demanding service that can only be performed by Muslims. The obvious implication is that a Muslim denies service from a non-Muslim due to his religious identity.

The way forward

While the change in terminology by the government is a welcome step which opens a window for Hindus, the next steps have to be taken by Hindus themselves and not the government. While the change in the wording gives Hindus an opening, the government cannot create a demand for Jhatka meat and that is something that Hindus would have to do for themselves.

It is a fact that the Halal method of slaughter will continue on the ground since the demand for Halal meat is created by Muslims. If Hindus want the Jhatka method to take predominance, the demand itself will have to be created first, just as Islamic nations and those who belong to the faith of Islam created for Halal.

Only recently, for example, it was reported that the South Delhi Municipal Corporation was planning to make it necessary for eateries and meat retailers in its jurisdiction to specify whether the meat they’re serving is halal or jhatka.

“According to Hinduism and Sikhism, consuming halal meat is forbidden and in opposition to the religions… Therefore, the committee resolves that this route be given to eating places and meat shops that it should be displayed mandatorily as to which meat is being bought and served by them…that halal or jhatka meat is available here”, furthered the resolution.

This was possible because demand was created by Hindus for Jhatka meat. After the raging debate, several Hindus asked for Jhatka meat at eateries and questioned them about why Jhatka was not being served, which could be the dietary preference of people who belonged to faiths other than Islam.

Big achievement for Hindus! – Mr Ramesh Shinde, National Spokesperson, Hindu Janajagruti Samiti

Mr. Ramesh Shinde

It is a great achievement for Hindus that APEDA has dropped the term ‘halal’ from its meat manual. ‘Halal certificates’ were mandatory for meat export under the pretext that the meat was being exported to Islamic nations; whereas 46% (i.e. 6 lakh tonnes) of the India’s meat exports are to non-Islamic Vietnam alone, where halal certificate is not required. However, due to pro-Islamic policies of the past governments, the meat trade that amounts to Rs. 23,646 Cr annually went on to strengthen the halal economy. This decision will benefit the Hindu butcher community, which was on the verge of becoming jobless since the halal meat process allowed only Muslim employees.

Decision on forcings the majority Hindus to consume halal meat awaited !

Corporations and catering organisations like India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), Air India, Railway’s IRCTC, etc. give contracts only to halal meat suppliers. The parliament’s mess is managed by railway catering, which also supplies only halal meat. Hindus are coerced to eat Halal meat which they are not supposed to eat. Hence the govt should stop making it mandatory that govt agencies also use only halal meat !

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