Bombay HC refuses to stay beef ban

The Bombay High Court (HC) Monday refused to stay the beef ban temporarily. The court was hearing a petition by various groups to relax the ban on beef for three days during Eid Al-Adha.
A bench headed by Justice Abhay S Oak said it could not take a drastic decision of staying the provisions of the law that will temporarily lift the ban.
In March, the Maharashtra government had banned the slaughter of bulls and calves in the state, where cow slaughter was already illegal. It made possession, transportation and consumption of beef a punishable offence.
The ban became a political issue after farmers — who were finding it hard to sell their old bullocks — and beef traders started protest against it.
The issue was taken up by Republican Party of India — an ally of the ruling BJP — which contended that the government was doing an injustice to the minority community and the farmers, according to Arab News.
-- Samir