To eat beef or not to eat? This question may not generate much reaction in most parts of the world, but the situation is different in India, writes BBC Monitoring's Vikas Pandey.Ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist BJP party came to power last year, the voices in favour of banning beef consumption have grown louder.
Two states, Haryana and Maharashtra, have already banned the sale and consumption of beef.The question of faith appears to be at the heart of the problem.Hindus, who comprise 80% of India's 1.2bn population, revere cows. But for the remaining 20%, that includes Muslims and Christians, beef is one of the cheapest source of nutritious meat.
It's a delicate situation. A complete ban on beef is likely to anger Muslims and Christians, but ignoring such calls can hurt BJP's political fortunes in their strongholds in Hindu-dominated states.
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