MUMBAI: The closure of slaughterhouses and meat shops ordered by several civic bodies on Independence Day has sparked a major political controversy in Maharashtra. Opposition parties have slammed the move as an infringement on personal food choices, while the decision has also revealed divisions within the ruling Mahayuti alliance. However, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis clarified that his government has not imposed any rule and the decision was taken by municipal bodies based on a 37-year-old government order, which is implemented every year. The controversy began with the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC), which issued an order banning the sale of meat on August 15 and warned of action against violators. According to the directive, all slaughterhouses and licensed butcher shops selling goat, sheep, chicken, and large animal meat were required to remain closed for 24 hours—from midnight of August 14 to midnight of August 15. Similar restrictions were subsequently announced by civic bodies in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Malegaon, and Nagpur. The move drew sharp criticism from opposition leaders. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray questioned the priorities of civic administrations, remarking that they should instead focus on pressing issues such as pothole-ridden roads. Ridiculing the decision, Aaditya Thackeray said that prawns are part of ‘Navratri prasad’ at his home. “What we eat on Independence Day is our right, our freedom. They cannot tell us whether to eat. In our house, even during Navratri, our prasad has prawns and fish because this is our tradition. This is our Hindutva. Why are you entering our homes?” he asked. NCP (SP) MLA Jitendra Awhad announced he would host a mutton party on August 15 to assert ‘freedom’ of food preferences. “On the day we got freedom, you are taking away our freedom to eat what we want.This is too much. Who are you to decide what people will eat and when?” he said, posting on X. Maharashtra Congress president Harshvardhan Sapkal also criticised the BJP government by saying that by bringing in the concept of ‘One Nation, One Leader,’ the BJP aims to impose one leader, one dress, one language and one diet, thereby destroying the unity in diversity of the country and bringing in dictatorship. The ruling alliance in Maharashtra appeared divided over the move. While the NCP questioned the ban, BJP leaders defended it, citing a 1988 state government order empowering municipal corporations to impose such restrictions on occasions like Independence Day and Mahavir Jayanti. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar from NCP said, “It is wrong to impose such a ban. In major cities, people of different castes and religions reside. If it is an emotional issue, then people accept it (ban) for a day. But if you clamp such orders on Maharashtra Day, Independence Day and Republic Day, then it is difficult.” Meanwhile, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the state government has no interest in regulating what people eat. “First of all, this state government has not taken any such decision. This decision has been in effect here in Maharashtra since 1988, when a government resolution (GR) in this regard was issued. In fact, even when Uddhav Thackeray was the chief minister, some municipal bodies implemented the meat ban on Independence Day. The government has no interest in deciding what someone should eat. We have many other important issues in front of us,” he added.
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