On November 18, the Uttar Pradesh government banned the manufacture, sale, storage, and distribution of halal-certified products. This decision followed a complaint filed at Lucknow바카라s Hazratganj Police Station, where the complainant alleged that certain companies were certifying products as halal to boost sales within a specific community, thereby 바카라toying with the public바카라s faith바카라. The ban exempts products which need halal certification for export purposes.
In a statement, the UP government alleged 바카라malicious attempts바카라 to discourage the use of products lacking a halal certificate not only seek 바카라unfair financial benefits바카라 but also form part of a 바카라pre-planned strategy to sow class hatred, create divisions in society, and weaken the country바카라 by "anti-national elements", PTI reported.
The state government gave a 15-day deadline to stakeholders including outlet chains, retailers, and department stores to remove all halal-certified food items from their shelves.
On November 19, a shared by the Government of UP read, 바카라The action was taken after UP CM Shri Yogi Adityanath Ji took cognizance of the issue of forged Halal certification by certain agencies, which is legal.바카라
Although the move came after the FIR was lodged, in the official notice announcing the ban, the Uttar Pradesh government referred to the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. According to this law, only the Food Safety and Standards Authority had the authority to provide certificates for food products, the order stated. It argued that halal certifications created a separate certification system, which goes against current government rules.Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, one of the halal-certifying bodies in India, refuted allegations of forged certifications, asserting that they were aimed at tarnishing their image
Niaz Farooqui, CEO of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, 바카라Certain individuals propagating false claims against Halal Certification directly undermine our national interests. Halal Trade stands as a significant $3.5 trillion industry, and India benefits from its promotion in exports and tourism, particularly with our crucial trade partners in the OIC countries and Southeast Asia...In response to baseless allegations aimed at tarnishing our image, Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind Halal Trust will take necessary legal measures to counter such misinformation.바카라
In his statement, Farooqui said the halal certificates were a matter of choice for individuals and manufacturers for their own satisfaction. 바카라Those who do not want to use such products are free not to use them,바카라 he added.
Hilal Ahmed, Associate Professor of Centre For The Study of Developing Society (CSDS), believes assessing how the ban will impact people in administrative ways will be complicated.
바카라Is it a ban on the certificate that says a product is halal or is it a ban on the product which is halal?바카라 he said.
Hilal Ahmed pointed out another dimension to the unfolding narrative that couldn't be dismissed바카라symbolic politics.
바카라The other sort of story is how it is propagated and how politically it is shown. So obviously we are in a phase of elections and therefore anything related to Muslims or anything related to eating habits of Muslims can be used in a variety of ways. This halal certificate ban can be used in a variety of ways,바카라 said Ahmed.
Ahmed believes that the administrative move is linked to the identity formation of Muslim eating habits which will have a greater impact on political processes. He, however, is unsure about the extent to which people will be affected by the ban, as no research has been done in this area.
바카라In India, we don't really have any halal food stickers, virtually on anything. India바카라s middle class, when they go and buy food from the butcher they don't ask for a certificate,바카라 said Ahmed. 바카라Another good thing for Indian Muslims is that pork is not widely consumed so that's why if you are a Muslim you have the option of eating halal or you can entirely be vegetarian.바카라
The new rule has also caused uncertainty among shopkeepers and departmental store workers with many of them unsure whether the ban pertains to the certificate declaring products as halal or the halal products themselves.
An employee at a local store, part of a national chain, revealed that they had returned all halal products in response to the recent ban on halal certification. 바카라We had some chips, wafers, dal and some chocolates which had the sticker on them so we sent it back. When the ban was announced, we got a circular from our headquarters to remove the items and we followed that. We were supposed to remove everything within 15 days.바카라
The owner of a corner store selling imported goods such as dates, honey, dry fruits, and olive oil from Muslim countries, explained that the majority of his inventory never bore the halal sticker to begin with.
바카라The only thing I have right now with the halal stamp is marshmallows and I바카라ll dispose of them. Most items in my shop are imported from countries like Saudi Arabia and it is understood that they are halal. They don바카라t have the stamp so I won바카라t be very affected,바카라 said the owner.
Another departmental store reported swift compliance with the new regulation, having promptly removed certain wafers and chocolates from their shelves. In contrast, smaller shops appeared to be in the dark about the ban, with a couple of them expressing ignorance about its existence and its potential impact on their businesses.
The decision has put consumers, like Lucknow resident F Ahmed, in a dilemma. Learning that halal-marked products will no longer be available, Ahmed expresses concern, stating that her family will need to reevaluate their longstanding consumption habits.
바카라We are very particular about this. We only used to have food products which clearly stated that it was halal. There are certain codes too, in addition to ingredients and the halal sticker that my husband looks at before buying something,바카라 said Ahmed.
Chips, with their potential inclusion of pork fat, were a particularly scrutinised item in Ahmed's household, among other things. She said, 바카라So we always used to check if it was halal or not.바카라
The Lucknow resident is unable to make sense of the Uttar Pradesh government바카라s move to ban 바카라manufacture, sale, storage and distribution of halal-certified products with immediate effect바카라.
She said, 바카라The certificate was beneficial to one community and was in no way harming the other community so why has it been banned?바카라
Ahmed is not the only one trying to identify the motive behind the ban, another resident of Lucknow, Jabeen Fatima echoed her concerns about the specific targeting of the halal sticker. She said not many products had halal written on it anyway and now the ones that had them will also be removed, 바카라I don바카라t think they바카라ll remove the green square with the green dot that바카라s for veg.바카라
Jabeen Fatima has decided to cut down on packaged products, having lost trust in the whole certification process. 바카라I do not know on whose authority it is [the certification]. [The ban] is just a bait바카라they want to stir up a storm of non-issues before the elections,바카라 she said.
