Watch: Assam government bans public consumption of beef
The Assam government has banned the public consumption of beef with immediate effect.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said his Cabinet had taken the decision in this regard after analysing the statements of State Congress president Bhupen Kumar Borah and Dhubri MP Rakibul Hussain, who “resented” the distribution of beef by political parties to influence voters in the Muslim-dominated Samaguri Assembly constituency in central Assam.
“Over the last few days, Bhupen Borah and Rakibul Hussain expressed concerns over beef consumption and gave the impression that they do not want beef to be consumed. The Cabinet analysed their statements and found that our Act, although strong, did not have this provision,” Mr. Sarma told journalists after the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday (December 4, 2024).
“Accordingly, the consumption of beef in hotels, restaurants, festivals, and community events has been prohibited from today. There will be no serving of beef in religious, social, and other public functions, and this provision will be added to strengthen the Assam Cattle Preservation Act of 2021,” he said.
Currently, the Act bans cattle slaughter and the sale of beef in areas where Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs are in the majority, and within a five kilometre radius of their places of worship.
Hafiz Rafiqul Islam, an MLA and general secretary of the minority-based All India United Democratic Front, opposed the State Cabinet’s move to ban the consumption of beef.
Criticising the BJP-led government, he said the Cabinet should not be deciding what people eat or wear. He questioned the BJP’s lack of consistency in matters regarding beef. “If they cannot ban beef in Goa or other northeastern States, why in Assam? We do not pay much heed to this decision,” he said.
The issue of beef consumption came up following allegations that political parties, including the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), distributed beef to lure voters in Samaguri, one of five Assembly seats in Assam where byelections were held on November 13.
The BJP’s Diplu Ranjan Sarmah defeated Congress candidate Tanzil Hussain by 24,501 votes to win the seat. The latter is the son of the Dhubri MP, who won Samaguri five times from 2001 to 2021.
