Himachal Pradesh has issued a directive for the centre which suggests it to consider bringing in a law that will not only stop the slaughter of cows across country, but also make sure a total nationwide ban in sale of beef and also its import and export. It has directed the centre to bring enactment within three months.
This directive has put fuel to the fire of the already raging debate on the issue of ‘BEEF BAN’. It adds on the list of protests during the Jain festival of ‘Parshuyana’, the controversy over Jammu and Kashmir High court judgment directing the state govt. to ensure ban on consumption of beef and the painful case of Dadri etc.
The tenets of Indian Constitution orders clearly refrain laws which discriminate on the basis of religion and caste, and that’s exactly what beef ban is all about. The judiciary system does not understand that enforced vegetarianism is a form indirect discrimination, and it has an uneven impact on people of different castes and religions.
India has Hindu population as a majority, but that does not mean that India can be called a Hindu country, as the preamble itself calls India a secular country, which means every religion is equal before the law. The state does not have the right to impose a certain good culture in any form on people only to protect the sentiments of a few god fearing Hindus. We can slowly see our democracy turning to theocracy.
If we respect the religious sentiments of a particular section of a society so much, why ignore the other sections? Doesn’t that mean that non-Christians should start fasting during Lent, non-Muslims should stop eating pork, and non-Jews eat only Kosher food?
Talk about animal rights? Aren’t goats, pigs, fishes, chickens and other animals that go into human stomach animals? Why not ban their slaughter?
Extremists talk about ‘Hurting the religious sentiments’ and misuse the leniency of Constitution against the choices of minority. Why does one not talk about ‘unity in diversity’ which is the true essence of our country?
Tolerance is defined as the ability or willingness to tolerate the existence of opinions or behaviour that one dislikes or disagrees with. The government should respect beliefs and practices of the minority as well without interference.
Every single incidence of religious disharmony is leading to the foundations of our democracy getting weaker. So yes, beef ban might be protecting a section of the society, but it is also violating every other thing that is essential for a strong democracy.
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