A shop that sells chicken downs its shutters in Gurgaon.
The nine-day meat ban announced by the Haryana government has not gone down well in Gurgaon. Unhappiness here with the ban rises from a variety of reasons, from a temporary loss of livelihood to the perceived violation of personal liberties.
If the meat ban is indeed implemented, Mohammed Rizwan says he will lose about Rs 50,000. Rizwan says he has been in the meat business in Gurgaon for the last 10 years, and that this is the first time he has come across a ban of this nature.
"What does this government think it is doing? So many people's livelihood depends on this. Fifty people are attached to my shop alone, he says. "The government promised ache din. This certainly does not qualify," Rizwan added.
He is not alone in his unhappiness with the ban. A customer in his shop termed it "regressive" and said it was against an individual's fundamental rights.
Gurgaon, a fast-growing hub for multi-national and IT companies, reacted sharply to the news of the meat ban. "I would like to choose what I eat. This is not good at all," said Vikas Chander, who works for a multi-national.
But functionaries of the BJP, which runs the Haryana government, defend the meat ban. "We have to respect all communities and their sentiments. Therefore, the ban was imposed. The ban was done to respect Jain sentiments," insisted Kulbhushan Bhardwaj, BJP in-charge of Gurgaon.
On Wednesday, a circular from the Haryana urban local body said the ban would be in place from September 11 to 19. The circular also said that a failure to comply would result in legal action. However, the Haryana government insists that the meat ban is only a request to comply and not an order.