B-town calls for ‘freedom of choice’

Artistes beef about Maharashtra government’s ban on slaughter, sale and possession of meat

Following the Maharashtra government’s ban on the sale and possession of beef in the state, Bollywood celebrities, such as Raveena Tandon, Farhan Akhtar and Ayushmann Khurrana shared their thoughts on what constitutes freedom of choice, reported IANS. Here’s what celebrities posted from their handles on the micro-blogging website.

“My only take on the beef issue is that it should not be enforced, it should be optional... To eat or not to eat is a personal choice,” tweeted acting veteran Raveena Tandon. Actor-filmmaker Akhtar took to Twitter and posted, “So now in Maharashtra, you can have beef with someone, but you can’t have beef with someone.” Actor-comedian Vir Das tweeted, “Dear government, with beef, let’s ban teeth. We can live on vegetable smoothies and, this way, your politicians can’t make hate speeches anymore.”

Actor Uday Chopra posted, “Beef gets banned… on the plus side, less red meat in our diet is a good thing, on the not-so-plus side, another step towards a theocratic state.” Artistes, who are vegetarians, also expressed distaste towards the move, with musician Vishal Dadlani tweeting, “I’m a vegetarian, so this #BeefBan doesn’t affect me personally. But freedom of choice is important, especially in a country where more than 30 per cent eat beef.”

Critically-acclaimed actor Nimrat Kaur tweeted, “No beef. Now, no jokes on this please.” Aspiring actor Siddharth Mallya took to Twitter and said, “So, if I was to go to someone’s house for dinner and they served me a steak, would I automatically become an accessory to the crime? #BeefBan.”

India President Pranab Mukherjee approved on Tuesday the Maharashtra Animal Preservation (Amendment) Bill, 1995, banning the slaughter of cows and bulls, according to Indian Express. Under the bill, anyone found to be selling beef or in possession of it can be jailed for five years and fined INR10,000. “This is a historic step, which has cultural as well as economic implications for the state,” said Kirit Somaiya, BJP MP from Mumbai.

Published in The Express Tribune, March  4^th,  2015.

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