New Delhi, January 5: A government body on Monday removed the word 'halal' from a red meat manual. According to a Hindustan Times report, this move came in the backdrop of the allegations by some Hindu groups who alleged that the use of the term gives an unfair business advantage to Muslim exporters.

The revised version of the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) manual reads- “The animals are slaughtered to the requirement of importing country/importer.” The older version, on the other hand,  mentioned that -"The animals are slaughtered strictly according to the ‘Halal’ method to meet the requirement of Islamic countries”. Eating ‘Halal’ Is Forbidden for Hindus and Sikhs; Delhi Restaurants Must Mention About Meat Being Served to Customers: SDMC Panel.

This debate between the two groups has been raging on for some time. A section of Hindu groups complained that use of the word Halal in the manual implied that APEDA was making it mandatory for exporters to buy and acquire only “halal-certified” meat.

This was affecting their businesses, as they argued that apart from Islamic countries in West Asia, India also exported meat to countries such as China, where “halal” certification is not needed. India also exports meat to Sri Lanka, where halal certification has been banned.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 05, 2021 08:23 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).