Assam police have launched a statewide crackdown against the sale of prohibited beef in hotels and restaurants. Police apprehended over a dozen people for illegally selling beef in hotels and restaurants.
On June 30 night, police raided four hotels along National Highway 37 in Kamrup district. Raids were conducted in four roadside Muslim hotels, namely Madina hotel, Bismillah hotel, Ali hotel and Rizwan hotel in Bijoynagar, Palashbari area. Substantial amounts of cooked and raw beef were recovered from the hotels.
Police discovered a substantial amount of illegal beef on the premises of the Ali and Rizwan hotels during the operation. According to reports, the proprietors of the Madina and Bismillah Hotels escaped the area after hearing about the raids, avoiding arrest.
In connection with the crime, police have arrested two people. Aminur Rahman and Shafique Ali are the names of the inmates. They are both suspected of having a direct hand in the acquisition and distribution of the prohibited meat items.
Police sources claim that the hotels along the major section of NH-17 had been in business for several years and were involved in the illegal beef trade, which is illegal in the state. The action, according to authorities, was part of a larger attempt to enforce laws pertaining to food safety and animal welfare, as well as to stop the illegal meat trade.
Top police officials stated that the raids were conducted after receiving specific information from reliable sources regarding the sale of prohibited beef.
In the meantime, police carried out a similar search on a local hotel in the Satgaon neighbourhood of Guwahati, confiscating a quantity of prohibited meat. One person, named Wajidur Rahman, was taken into custody immediately. In Assam, where the sale of beef is a delicate topic strongly linked to religious and cultural sentiments, the occurrence has sparked new discussions about the implementation of food rules.
Similarly, the Kokrajhar police also raided four hotels on Masjid Road: the Dadaji Hotel, the Amir Hotel, the Alif Hotel, and the Muslim Hotel. They found and confiscated about 10 kg of beef. Additional Superintendent of Police Navanita Sharma oversaw the operation.
Similar raids were also conducted in Mangaldoi and Hailakandi towns. Police apprehended six people regarding the case in Mangaldoi and Hailakandi. Raids were also conducted in Morigaon, Sibasagar and Dibrugarh districts. The police stated that legal action will be taken against the offenders under the Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021. Sale and consumption of beef in public areas, hotels, restaurants and within 5-kilometre radius of places of worship of Hinduism, Jain, Sikhs, and Buddhism are prohibited in Assam under the same act.
The Assam police, in coordinated operations throughout the state on July 1, arrested at least 133 people and confiscated more than one tonne of suspected beef as part of a massive crackdown on alleged violations of the Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021. Akhilesh Kumar Singh, Inspector General of Police (Law and Order), stated that the Assam Police conducted a suo motu operation in response to reports of unlawful animal slaughter and the unapproved sale of beef in several restaurants and roadside hotels.
