Akhilesh dares PM Modi, BJP chief Shah to ban meat exports
Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav has challenged PM Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah to issue a blanket ban on meat exports. This came after Shah vowed to shut down all slaughterhouses in Uttar Pradesh if voted to power. "He (Shah) should ban the use of leather and start wearing khadaus (wooden sandals)," Yadav said.
Politics over "pink revolution" has bounced back with vengeance against the country's flourishing meat industry.BJP president Amit Shah has vowed to shut down all slaughterhouses in the state, the nation's leading producer of buffalo meat, if voted to power.In return, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, who is seeking re-election for a second term, has now challenged the Modi government at the centre to issue a blanket ban on meat exports."I suggest the PM and the BJP's national president go back to Delhi and put an end to exports of meat. Also, they must end the facilities and subsidies provided to any slaughterhouse with immediate effect," said the Samajwadi Party leader in an interview to India Today, cycling along the Gomti riverfront. PINK REVOLUTIONDuring his election campaign in 2014, Narendra Modi attacked the then Congress-led UPA government for spawning a "pink revolution" -- a term he used for growing meat exports and state subsidies to abattoirs."He (Shah) should ban use of leather and start wearing khadaus (wooden sandals). Is this a business started by the SP?" Yadav said.According to the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Development Authority, the country's exports of animal products stood at Rs 30,137 crores in 2015-16, of which buffalo meat alone accounted for Rs 26,681.56 crore.More than 95 per cent of meat exports come from buffaloes, which do not enjoy the sacred status of cows, whose slaughtering is banned in most of the states.The surge in the trade is primarily attributed to rising demands in international market."Any business with growing profit will flourish. I ask them to stop export of meat. Where does the meat go from the slaughterhouses?" argued Yadav. He insisted animal products were also widely used by drug-making companies, many of them in Gujarat, the home state of Modi and Shah. "He (the BJP president) must also close pharmaceutical companies in Gujarat," challenged Yadav.Data shows Uttar Pradesh accounts for the highest share of 28 per cent of the country's total population of buffaloes.HOME TO SECOND-LARGEST NUMBER OF SLAUGHTERHOUSESAccording to an RTI reply by the Animal Husbandry Department last year, the state is home to the second-largest number of slaughterhouses followed by Maharashtra, where a meat ban in 2015 caused a political storm.  Registered abattoirs number 316 in Maharashtra followed by 285 Uttar Pradesh, the RTI response revealed.India, according to a report by credit-rating agency ICRA last year, is likely to record a 50 percent jump in its exports of buffalo meat to Rs 40,000 crore in the next five years, compared with Rs 26,682 crore in FY16. Since 2008, ICRA noted, the exports in the sector have registered a compounded annual growth rate of 29 percent. Asked the sacred cows were also being allegedly butchered along with other livestock in his state's slaughterhouses, Yadav said stringent laws were already in place to prosecute the offenders."We have made laws against cow slaughter and those found guilty are punished," he said. His government, Yadav added, would deal with any such complaint without prejudice. "I ask all of you to give information about which SP leader has occupied land (for slaughterhouses)? Which slaughterhouse is involved in cow slaughter?" he contended.BJP FAILED IN FULFILLING ACHCHE DIN PROMISEThe Samajwadi Party leader accused Modi's BJP of failure in realising its "Achche Din" promise for the voters.People of his state, said the UP chief minister, weren't satisfied with the central government."Modi is our prime minister. Obviously, there is a lot of cheering for him and people are happy to see him. UP sent the maximum MPs to the Lok Sabha, but now public here wonder what the (central) government has done for them," he said when pointed out the prime minister still retained his charisma on voters.Yadav sought to portray development as a key plank for his government to seek another tenure, citing expressways as an example."I would like to say that it is for the first time that a balanced work has been done. ...I've connected 50 districts through a four-lane highway. It has happened for the first time," he insisted.The chief minister downplayed criticism that many roads, other than highways, remained dilapidated across the state, saying most of them were under construction."For the time in the state, people of UP are happy about the development work we have done. They wish to give us a second chance because of our developmental work. They have seen work progressing from cities to the villages," he said.CENTRE TO BLAME FOR METRO DELAYIn response to the prime minister's stinging assault on the Yadav government over its metro project, the CM attributed the delay to the centre."Here, you can see that the Samajwadi Party (government) built the metro within a record time of two years. Let them (the centre) first give us the NoC (no-objection certificate). We've to give that NoC to the railways. There are security checks and trial runs before final clearance," he retorted. "I'm not accusing but the railways have its own procedures and security checks."Yadav also sought to project his alliance with Rahul Gandhi's Congress party in Uttar Pradesh as a beginning. "The future of the alliance of SP-Cong can't be concluded as of now but will begin from UP," he remarked. "Maintaining the balance is our success," the SP leader said when asked about the prospects of the tie-up between his cycle and Gandhi's hand symbols.He, however, played down suggestions that he might face a political sabotage from within the SP. "In politics when there are issues in a party. Such doubts are frequently raised. But in my understanding, this won't impact us a lot," Yadav said. Asked whether he had his father, Mulayam Yadav, on board, the chief minister said: "Netaji is with us. His blessings are with us. He has been involved in campaign trail as well."BEST POLICE-RESPONSE SYSTEM ACROSS STATEOn law-and-order, he rejected PM Modi's accusations of biased policing, saying the state government had developed the "best" police-response system across the state."The nation's best police response system has been made by SP. The concept of (helpline) UP 100 is such that no one can complain that their call wasn't received. Police will reach the spot and help the needy, get the case registered and take action," he said. "After the UP 100 initiative, no one can dare interfere with governance."Yadav also specifically listed out pro-woman programs, which he said benefited hundreds of thousands in the state. "We started the Samajwadi Pension Yojana with 25-35 lakh women getting benefited. And today, we give pension to 55 lakh women, which is sent directly to their accounts. We have decided to provide Rs 1,000, besides pension, to each financially backward woman. This is a huge initiative."In her remarks, the CM's wife, Dimple Yadav, however, described woman safety as a national and not solely a state issue."There is problem with regards to women's safety, not only in UP but everywhere. But the point is that the issue is discussed during elections only and put aside later," she argued.