A total of 196 persons have been apprehended following statewide raids on 178 hotels, restaurants and slaughterhouses in connection with alleged violations of the Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021, police said on Wednesday.
According to inspector-general of police (law and order) Akhilesh Kumar Singh, the search operations across these establishments also led to the seizure of 1,732kg of suspected beef on Tuesday.
“This is a state-wide drive. Not much recovery today. The data is primarily from Tuesday, though the drive is ongoing,” Singh said.
The Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021, prohibits the slaughter and sale of beef in areas with a non-Muslim population and within a five-kilometre radius of any
temple or Vaishnavite monastery.
The crackdown coincides with the Opposition Congress’ continued protests over alleged irregularities in two government-backed schemes related to dairy and allied sector development, including the distribution of Gir cows to individuals reportedly linked to the BJP-led ruling dispensation.
However, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma asserted on June 20 that the Act would be strictly enforced, particularly in light of communal tension that flared after severed cattle heads and body parts were found following Eid-ul-Zuha, especially in Dhubri.
Sarma had stated that he had “directed” all deputy commissioners to strictly ensure there was no slaughter, sale or consumption of beef within the restricted five-kilometre zones.
Most of the violations occurred in areas where beef consumption during Eid is customary, but which also fall within the restricted zone of temples or monasteries, thereby breaching the Act, Sarma had noted.