Meat shops in Mumbai have been closed for four days.
Following the lead of BJP-ruled Maharashtra, the BJP government of Rajasthan -- which has the largest population of Jains after Maharashtra -- has declared a ban on meat for three days. Slaughter and sale of meat has been
banned for four days in Mumbai on account of a Jain festival of forgiveness - Paryushan.
On September 9, the director of local bodies in Rajasthan declared that all slaughter houses, meat, fish and chicken shops will remain closed for three days this month that mark key festivals of the Jains.
The days are September 17 and 18 for Paryushan, a festival of Shwetambar Jains, and September 27, for Anant Chaturdashi, celebrated by Digambar sect.
The ban on sale of meat has been enforced since 2008, both by the Ashok Gehlot and Vasundhara Raje governments.
But this year, the order issued to all municipal bodies and district collectors across Rajasthan will amount to a ban on sale of meat and fish for three days, said Salim Engineer, a member of the Forum for Democracy and Communal Harmony.
"It is all right to have a two-day ban, but anything beyond that is unacceptable," he said. "It affects people's livelihood... if the ban is beyond two days, people should be compensated for loss of livelihood."
The meat traders in Mumbai have already moved the high court pleading loss of livelihood. Though meat shops are open today, the government-run abattoir at Deonar is closed, so there will be no supply tomorrow. Today, the court said that an 8-day ban can't be a formula, "Mumbai is a modern city".
The ruling BJP and its ally Shiv Sena are at loggerheads over the ban - while the BJP wants an 8-day ban, the Sena wants to scrap the ban altogether. The civic body has settled for four days.
Purushottam Biyani, the director of Local Bodies, Rajasthan, said, "Slaughter houses come under the jurisdiction of civic bodies" and each year, an order for their closure is issued during the Jain festival.