The Meghalaya government’s Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Department has issued an order prohibiting all types of the dog slaughter, effective September 9, 2021. Section 428 and 429 of the Indian Penal Code, as well as Section 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, make it illegal to kill stray or domesticated dogs, according to the decision. The Food Safety and Standards Act of 2006, as well as the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulation of 2011, make it illegal to kill dogs for meat.
As a result, the killing of stray or domesticated dogs, as well as the slaughtering of dogs for meat, is forbidden in Meghalaya. Anyone found in violation of this order will be prosecuted under Sections 428 and 429 of the Indian Penal Code, Section 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, and/or any other applicable laws. The Government of Meghalaya announced the directive on their official Twitter account. “#Prohibited for the killing of stray or domesticated dogs and the slaughtering of dogs for meat in the State of Meghalaya,” the tweet states.
Maneka Gandhi’s letter to the Minister of DoNER
With a desire to gain power in the Northeast, the BJP may have backed down on its demand to outlaw beef in those states, but Maneka Gandhi, a prominent party member and minister for women and child development, has expressed an official objection to eating dog meat, a Naga specialty.
Gandhi penned a letter to Jitendra Singh, the minister of state for development of the northeastern region (DoNER), earlier this month, urging him to investigate the “illegal” consumption of dog meat in Nagaland and Mizoram, as well as the “illegal” selling of dogs for this reason.
The letter alleged that people involved in the trade were also involved in narcotics and gun trafficking, and demanded that the NIA look into the matter.
Assembly of Meghalaya passes resolution against prohibition on cattle slaughter
The Meghalaya Assembly overwhelmingly passed a resolution on Monday rejecting the Centre’s notification prohibiting the sale and purchase of cattle for slaughter at animal markets and demanding that it be withdrawn since it will “affect the state’s economy and people’s eating habits.”
Members of the Assembly, regardless of political affiliation, backed Chief Minister Mukul Sangma’s resolution. “This House takes strong notice of the flaws and infirmities in these Rules (Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Regulation of Livestock Markets Rules, 2017), as notified, and resolves that the same be withdrawn by the Government of India with immediate effect so that the federal and secular character of our Constitution is not jeopardized or we are faced with a situation where the law forbids some a practice that is legal in other countries.
The notification was “designed to affect,” according to Sangma, who introduced the resolution “the people of Meghalaya in particular, and the people of the north-east in general. He went on to say that it had “severe flaws and infirmities” and that it might have an “adverse influence on the economy and culture” of Meghalaya. Beef, according to the chief minister, is an “integral part of our culture.” “Meghalaya’s tribals have a unique dietary pattern, and the state’s demand for it was 23,634 metric tonnes in 2015-2016.
In Shillong, a Mumbai activist raises the whistle on the dog meat trade
After a Mumbai-based animal rights activist warned the authorities in Meghalaya on Friday about the approaching brutality, two stray dogs in the northeastern state were saved from being clobbered to death. Meet Ashar, a Mumbai-based activist with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA India), learned that a man had kidnapped two stray dogs and confined them at a house to kill them and sell the flesh.
“I contacted Meghalaya’s police chief, SK Jain, who immediately ordered his officers to take action. One individual was arrested and the dogs were rescued as a result of the incident “Ashar stated. “We appreciate the cooperation of the Meghalaya police.”
Vivek Syiem, the police chief of the East Khasi Hills area, informed TOI that they searched the spot with the help of a local NGO, the Stray Animal Rescue Society, and detained a Shillong resident, Ropeklien Hmar, and recovered weapons used to kill dogs from him.
More arrests are expected in the case by the Meghalaya police. The illicit dog meat trade has been charged as a criminal offense under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
According to a Peta volunteer, this exposure by their activists demonstrates how to mute, innocent animals that are slaughtered for monetary benefit. “Our ‘best pals,’ dogs, are not exempt. Such heinousness must come to an end.”
