Beef traders in Goa call off strike to protest harassment by cow vigilante groups

Panaji: Normal supply of beef in Goa is expected to resume from Wednesday with the traders ending their strike called to protest the harassment by cow vigilante groups. All Goa Qureshi Meat Traders Association on Tuesday evening announced the withdrawal of the strike and resumption of meat supply from neighbouring Karnataka from Wednesday. [caption id=“attachment_2540900” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. AFP[/caption] “Police have assured us that they will not allow the harassment of traders who import beef from Belagavi in Karnataka at the border,” Association president Manna Bepari told reporters. “So we are withdrawing our strike and the supplies will resume from tomorrow,” Bepari said. Beef traders were on strike for the last four days as a result of which the coastal state faced a scarcity of beef. Gau Raksha Abhiyaan, an NGO, had targeted trucks carrying beef from Karnataka, claiming that animals are slaughtered in illegal slaughterhouses across the state border. Earlier on Tuesday, former Congress MP Francis Sardinha alleged that many cow vigilantes “are sponsored by the BJP-led state government (in Goa)”. “This is because the government wants to satisfy its bosses in the RSS,” Sardinha told a press conference. Beef was a staple food in the coastal state and part of the cuisine of the minority communities, he said. Slaughterhouses in Karnataka too had refused to supply the meat till the Goa government took steps to stop the harassment by cow vigilante groups. According to Bepari, around 25 tonnes of beef is brought to Goa from Belagavi every day. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alleged that the “beef crisis” was being created to divert the attention of people from controversies like the Mahadeyi river water sharing and coal pollution.