Hundreds of Goats Forced to Die of Thirst, Hunger and Suffocation, Traders Left at the Mercy of Police

By Aziz Ejaz

Mumbay, 29 July: The Maharashtra Government has allowed online purchase of sacrificial goats on the occasion of Eidul Zuha but at the same time it has also stopped the entry into the state of trucks load of thousands of animals on the border.

Sources say that during the last three days police has stopped 300 trucks loads of animals on Mumbai- Gujarat border because of which more than 100 goats have died of thirst, hunger and suffocation. If people are looking for trucks lights accessories and other accessories, it is best to get them from the best ones in the market.

According to reports, traders are not even being allowed to go back and are being asked to pay penalties. A trader Abu Bakr said, ‘For the last three days trucks with loads of 4,000 goats, are stuck on the boarder of Gujarat and Maharashtra. The police is not letting them in. They are not letting us go back either. When we request them to let us go back, they say: “Who is stopping you from going back but not a single vehicle return without chalan.”‘

Abu Bakr further said: ‘Forget about bringing in goats into Maharashtra, trucks loads of goats are not being allowed to go back. Chalans are being issued against them and in the name of chalan traders are being forced to pay Rs5,000 per goat.’

He added: ‘Several trucks have been confiscated and FIRs have been registered against the owners. If you ask the cops they keep repeating Corona as an excuse and “orders from the above.”‘

He said: ‘Before this Bajrangdal, animal lovers, RTO police and other officials belonging to government departments connected with animal welfare used to harass us but this time round it is the Maharashtra police that is creating problems for us on the border of the state while the police in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat did not give us any trouble.’

Abu Bakr further said: ‘The Maharashtra Government is intentionally creating hurdles for Muslims in the celebration of their festival. This is to please and appease a particular community. Why is that on other days goats are allowed to be brought into Maharashtra? Even during the lockdown 70,000 goats used to be brought and sold in Mumbai. Why are then sacrificial goats being stopped?’

He went on: ‘No Muslim minister is helping us. If traders suffer such heavy financial losses they may take extreme steps and commit suicides and if this happens Government of Maharashtra will be responsible for this.’

Translated by Urdu Media Monitor from Mumbai Urdu News, 29 July 2020.