Want to Eat Beef? Not Welcome Here: Haryana Minister Anil Vij

Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij’s statement, discriminatory to beef-eaters, has provoked a Congress backlash.

Haryana Health Minister, Anil Vij. (Photo: ANI screengrab)

There are no plans to relax the stringent ban on beef in Haryana, even for visiting foreigners, despite speculation in the media that the law would indeed be revised.

Reacting to the issue, Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij has said:

<i>Jo bina beef khaaye reh nahi sakte hain, wo naa ayein Haryana mein </i>(Those who cannot survive without eating beef should stay away from Haryana). There are other countries we don’t visit because they eat beef.&nbsp;

<b>Anil Vij</b>

His comments have provoked a strong response from the Congress Opposition, which is of the view that people’s eating habits should not be policed.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Monday ruled out any plan to issue licences and allow foreigners to consume beef in the state. Under the provisions of the law, cow trafficking, slaughtering and eating beef are banned in the state. The law clamps a complete ban on cow slaughter in the state and provides for a rigorous imprisonment ranging from three years to 10 years for killing the animal.