Cow slaughter: Kiren Rijiju should look into ground reality before commenting says CPI

New Delhi [India], June 11 (ANI): Slamming Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju for his stating that no problem is being faced by the North Eastern people due to cow ban, Communist Party of India (CPI) leader D Raja on Sunday advised the former to first look into ground reality before passing such comments. "Even though Kiren Rijiju is from Arunachal, he doesn't know what is happening in North Eastern region or else he wants to show that he is the number one defender of BJP policies at Centre. He should look into the ground reality as people are agitating and revolting on this issue," Raja told ANI. He said the cow slaughter ban is an irrational and unconstitutional order as it encroaches upon the rights on the state government and also deprives the right of the citizens. "The government should not dictate what people should eat or not and Rijiju should also understand this. What Rijiju is speaking is totally unacceptable; the government should withdraw this order soon as possible which is causing further tension," he said. Earlier, after the Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah who wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking him to repeal the new rules which would put 'enormous financial burden on the farmers, Rijiju yesterday rubbished reports of trouble in the Northeast following the Centre's notification on cow slaughter. "The protest on cattle trade notification is political. Congress and some pseudo secular group are raising unnecessary issues which are obsolete," Rijiju told the media here. He further said that nobody was facing any problem in the northeastern states including Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur following Centre's notification. "It is not at all an issue. There is no difficulty in the northeastern region. Everyone is eating what they like. There is no clash, no arrest. No one is put behind the bars," he added. Following the Centre's notification prohibiting sale of cattle for slaughter purpose, the states including Kerala, Karnataka and Tripura are standing against the new rule dubbing it 'unconstitutional'. While Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan urged the Chief Ministers of other states to raise their voices against the Centre's notification, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking him to repeal the 'unconstitutional norm.' Vijayan had earlier written a letter to the Chief Ministers saying that the restrictions imposed on cattle trade would adversely affect the livelihood of the millions of people, especially, those in the agriculture sectors adding that the rule is an impermissible encroachment into the domain of the State Legislatures. Drawing wrath from various fractions, Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan ordered that the ministry has notified the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 to ensure that the sale of cattle is not meant for slaughter purposes. He said the seller and buyer both have to ensure that the cattle is not being bought or sold across the country's livestock markets market for slaughter purposes. The rules also state that the purchaser shall not sacrifice the animal for any religious purpose or sell it to a person outside the state without permission and must keep in with the state's cattle protection laws. (ANI)