After beef fry breakfast, Kerala legislators discuss if cattle slaughter rules have any meat

From hosting widespread ‘beef fests' to being vocal about their criticism, the Kerala government and opposition continues to take a strong stand against the Centre’s latest rules on cattle slaughter for animal markets.

The one-day special Kerala Assembly session began on Thursday with a quick beef fry breakfast as lawmakers were set to discuss the Centre's new cattle trade and slaughter rules.

The Kerala legislators started their day at the assembly canteen here before heading to debate on the new central rule that they say infringes upon the states' rights.

An employee of the canteen told IANS on normal working days when the assembly is in session generally beef is served only after 11 a.m.

"But today, with the session wholly devoted to discussing the beef issue, we brought 10 kg of beef early in the morning. By now a good number of MLAs have already had beef fry before heading to the assembly floor," said the employee on condition of anonymity.

"Devikulam CPI-M legislator S. Rajendran was the first to be served steaming hot beef fry," the canteen attendant said. 

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan began the daylong session by moving a resolution against the manner in which the Centre has gone ahead floating the new rule in May.

"This new rule is nothing but a blatant violation on the rights of individuals to eat what they wish and want. This new rule will hugely affect the agrarian society of our state and also our country," Vijayan said. 

"To take care of a cow that has stopped giving milk, a farmer has to spend Rs 40,000. huge majorities of our society are non-vegetarians and this new law is in no way acceptable to us," the Chief Minister added.

After CM, it was Senior CPI (M) leader and former Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan who unleashed an attack on the BJP in today’s special session of the Kerala Assembly convened to discuss the issue.

Achuthanandan in his sharp sarcastic manner said, "The Union Government has been creating principles which can challenge the evolution theory of Charles Darwin for Kalapithav (bull father) and go mathav (cow mother).” 

He even said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi while visiting European countries tasted beef himself and now speaks against it when he rarely comes back to the country. He urged the lone member of the BJP in the Kerala Assembly, O Rajagopal to tell the PM the feelings of the people of Kerala. 

He went on to say that the notification of the Union Government was prepared by those who don't know the basic lessons of cow protection. “The intention of notification was to enable corporates like Adani and Ambani to have monopoly over meat trade,” he said.  

He urged the BJP to consider the problems of ordinary farmers and to address the concerns of those who are engaged in slaughtering. 

“Kerala is a land of cooperative institutions. We have to examine the possibility of running slaughter houses in cooperative sector in the model of Coffee Houses. We should make value added products of beef and earn additional revenue by exporting them.”  Achuthanandan said. 

He pointed towards the BJP’s hypocrisy in shedding tears for army men guarding the country’s border and at the same time taking commission for selling their coffins. 

He mocked “fake sanyasis” who he says view castration of stray dogs and bulls as an attack on cow mother. “It was recently that one of such sanyasis was castrated,” he said, referring to the self-proclaimed godman in Kerala who was bobbitised by a 23-year-old woman whom he had allegedly been sexually exploiting for years.