Lucknow: An advisory from King George's Medical University (KGMU) prohibiting the preparation of non-vegetarian food on hostel premises has triggered a political controversy in Uttar Pradesh.
Opposition parties called the move "dictatorial" and "unconstitutional", while Union Minister Chirag Paswan said the decision may have been taken keeping local sentiments in mind.
The row erupted a day after KGMU issued an advisory on Tuesday, directing that non-vegetarian food should not be cooked on hostel premises following concerns raised by Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel, the chancellor of state universities, during the university's convocation on Monday.
The university, however, clarified that students would still be free to order non-vegetarian food from outside.
Reacting to the decision on Wednesday, Samajwadi Party spokesperson Fakhrul Hasan Chand described the order as a "Tughlaqi decree".
"Will Governor Anandiben Patel issue any order for BJP MPs who eat fish and rice in West Bengal? Your ideology only changes after coming to Uttar Pradesh," he said.
Senior Congress leader and party spokesperson Anshu Awasthi alleged that the BJP had no right to regulate citizens' food habits or lifestyle. He termed the decision "dictatorial".
The Congress leader said restricting students from cooking non-vegetarian food reflected a contradiction in the BJP's stand, especially since India remains one of the world's leading meat exporters.
Awasthi also questioned why BJP leaders did not comment on statements by some of their own leaders supporting beef consumption in certain regions, alleging that the policy amounted to imposing food choices on people.
Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan adopted a measured stand on the issue.
"I believe that if such a decision has been taken, it would have been done keeping in mind the sentiments of the local people," he told reporters in Lucknow.
The issue drew mixed reactions from religious leaders.
Imam of Lucknow Eidgah, Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangi Mahali, urged the KGMU administration to withdraw the decision. "More than 61 per cent of people in India are non-vegetarian. From a medical perspective, non-vegetarian food is considered beneficial for human health," he said.
Shia cleric Maulana Yasoob Abbas, however, said the matter should not be politicised.
"It is the university's decision. No one needs to comment on it. If someone wants to eat non-vegetarian food, they can go outside and eat it. This should not be linked to politics," he said.
KGMU officials on Tuesday clarified that non-vegetarian food has never been part of the menu in the university's 18 official hostel messes.
They said the advisory aimed to prevent the cooking of non-vegetarian food in two or three privately run cooperative messes operated by student groups after the Governor flagged the issue.
This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.
