CHANDIGARH: Punjab and Haryana High Court has put the Haryana government on notice on a public interest litigation challenging the Haryana Gau Seva Aayog for ordering to collect samples from roadside vendors in Mewat district to check for beef. Advocate Haseen had sought directions to the Haryana government and the Aayog to call off their "biryani policing", which, he said is a "brazen attempt to polarise communities and give rise to sectarian violence."
A Division Bench, comprising of Justices SS Saron and Lisa Gill said, "The manner in which they go about by overawing public, it appears he is aggrieved. " The court said, "We must want assurance from the state that everything will be done as per law and not which may create any kind of disharmony." It said that the state authorities can go for checking food adulteration but as per the provision of Section 15 of The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, the competent authority are the food inspectors and not the Gau Seva Aayog.
The Haryana Gau Seva Aayog had ordered to collect biryani samples on August 24, from shops and markets in Mewat and Nuh on a whim that they might be serving beef. Petitioner's counsel Mohammad Arshad submitted that Haryana Gau Seva Aayog's "biryani policing" is a clear violation of fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution of India under Articles 14, 19, 21, and 25.
