Mira-Bhayander Municipal Corporation: 8-day meat ban chopped to 2-days

A year after the Mira-Bhayander Municipal Corporation (MBMC) stirred controversy when it demanded that slaughterhouses be shut for the eight-day Jain festival Paryushan, the BJP-led civic body has decided to go soft on the issue. When the proposal for the ban came up in the corporation again this year, the BJP moved that it would only seek for a two-day closure of slaughterhouses for Paryushan, which begins on August 29.

MNS party workers sold chicken to protest the meat ban in Mira-Bhayander, last year. File pic

Resolution passed
BJP's Geeta Jain, the mayor of the MBMC, has confirmed that the house passed a resolution on Friday, for a two-day ban on slaughterhouses in the corporation's jurisdiction. Incidentally, she claimed that the NCP had opposed the move, and demanded that the MBMC continue with the eight-day ban.

Last year, the corporation's resolution had led to a huge uproar, as the opposition feared that the ban would be replicated in Mumbai too. The BJP had faced a lot of criticism after its own ally Shiv Sena lashed out at the party for propagating the meat ban. At the time, the Sena had claimed that it wouldn't support the resolution. However, Jain said that parties were only politicising the meat ban issue. "It wasn't only last year that we suggested a ban on slaughterhouses. I have order copies, which clearly show that the corporation has banned slaughterhouses in the area [during the festival] for years now. However, the matter was politicised and Shiv Sena spoke aggressively against it."

This year, the NCP opposed the proposal. "While both BJP and the Shiv Sena agreed to the two-day ban, NCP wanted to play politics and claimed that the ban should continue for eight days. However, even many within the NCP didn't support the move and only four votes were against the proposal," said Jain.