Ban on production, storage, and sale of halal products in Uttar Pradesh
| Ban on halal production in Uttar Pradesh
Permission only for export |
Lucknow (UP) – The Uttar Pradesh (UP) Government filed a case against the Islamic organisations which were issuing halal certificates after it received complaints against them. Now, the Government has imposed a ban on the production, storage, distribution, and sale of products with Halal Certification. The UP-State Food Safety and Drug Administration Commissioner issued an order on the 18th of November 2023 in this context, granting permission only to export halal products.
Parallel certification creates confusion about the quality of the product
It has been mentioned in the order, ‘Stringent legal action will be taken against a person or a company engaged in production, storage, distribution, and sale of halal certified medicines, medical equipment, food items, and cosmetics. Halal Certification is operated as a parallel system, creating confusion about the quality of a product and violating the Government Rules and Regulations.
Only FSSAI has a right to issue certificates
UP Food Safety and Drug Administration Commissioner Anita Singh said that earlier Halal Certification was limited only to meat, but now, the halal certificate is issued to different kinds of products such as oil, sugar, toothpaste, spices, etc. All laws related to the certification of food items have been repealed and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is the only department, the only Authority, recognised for certification. Barring FSSAI, no other institution or company can issue certification to products.
A petition filed even in the Supreme Court against Halal Certification
Advocate Vibhor Anand filed a petition in the Supreme Court in April 2022, demanding a total ban on halal products and Halal Certification. It was stated in the petition that halal-certified products are made for a population of only 15% in this country, and the fundamental rights of 85% of the population are being violated. It was also appealed, in the petition, to multinational companies to remove all halal-certified products from the market. Furthermore, it was stated in the petition that the Halal Certification was first introduced in 1974 for meat, and it was applicable only to meat products till 1993.
Cost of Halal Certification
The ‘Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, Delhi’ website shows the cost of getting Halal Certification for three years as Rs 61,500 other than GST. The rate for the export of meat is Rs 800 per product and Rs 1,000 per non-meat product.
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