In a significant move, Government of India has removed the word ‘Halal’ from the Red Meat Manual issued by Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA).

Earlier, it was brought to attention by digital media platform ‘Upword’ that the Red Meat Manual mandates ‘only Halal’ meat to be exported. The manual had problematic references that read “All animals must be slaughtered by Halal method in the presence of holy men approved by the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind as per Islamic Shariyat, for certification”. There was even a section dedicated for Halal in the old manual.

Soon, APEDA clarified saying that Government of India does not mandate only Halal meat to be exported and that it was the requirement of majority of the importing countries. It added that Halal certification agencies are accredited directly by importing countries in which the government has no role.

However, realizing that the manual did sound like it made ‘Halal’ method of slaughtering mandatory, it has been changed now with the word ‘Halal’ removed from the manual completely. Other words with references to one particular relgion like ‘Islamic’, ‘Shariyat’, ‘Halal’, ‘Ulema’, etc.,  have also been deleted.

The section that read, “The animals are slaughtered by Halal System under the strict vigilance of recognised and registered Islamic body as per the tenets of Islamic Shariyat. The certificate for Halal is issued by the representatives of registered Islamic body under whose supervision, the slaughter is conducted in order to meet the requirement of importing countries” has also been removed.

What this means is that the manual which earlier seemed to mandate ‘Halal’ for export of meat making the industry a hegemony of Muslims now provides the opportunity to create an export market for ‘Jhatka’ meat.

Halal in Arabic means ‘permissible’. In the Halal method of slaughtering, the animal or the bird is killed by cutting through its jugular vein, carotid artery and windpipe that drains out all the blood, leading to the animal/bird’s slow death. Halal certification mandates that the process must be performed only by a Muslim and the name of Allah must be invoked while slaughtering. Any deviation from the mandated process renders the meat ‘haram’ (forbidden).

Halal is seen as imposition of Islamic religious beliefs and practices over non-Muslims. It is also seen as leading to monoculturalism and monopoly as they restrict culinary diversity and keep non-Muslims out of business and employment opportunities.

With the deletion of ‘Halal’ from ‘Red Meat Manual’ of APEDA, the impression that India, a secular country, openly endorsing the religious practice of one particular community has come to an end.