Food choice in crisis: Forced vegetarianism in Gurugram

Last March, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) decided to close all meat shops under its jurisdiction on Tuesdays citing “Hindu sentiments”, and ignored the argument of MCG Commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh of food being a matter of independent choice.

Food and politics have been around for a very long time, more so in recent years. So, being a resident of Gurugram for over a decade, I was curious to find out whether meat eating is really against “Hindu sentiment”? Moreover, does such closure affect my “right to food”? Some ‘experts’ have propagated the idea that meat largely entered into ‘Hindu’ kitchens after the Islamic and European invasions. Well, history tells a different tale.

Our association with non-vegetarian food goes back to the time of the Indus Valley Civilization when animal food was consumed in abundance and the same can be judged from the quantity of bones left behind. There are extensive references that people from the Vedic ages enjoyed eating animal food. Food historian, K.T. Acharya claims that in the Vedas at least 50 animals, which included goats, sheep, oxen, castrated bulls, horses and barren cows, were deemed for sacrifice to the Gods. Colleen Taylor Sen agrees with Acharya but also notes that some experts argue that the evidence of cow sacrifice stems from mistranslation of the texts. In any case, I am not intending to address that controversy here. The Arthashastra by Kautilya (written in the 4th century BC) makes references to a superintendent of slaughterhouses implying state supervision of animal slaughter.

During the later Vedic period, dietary laws became stricter towards consumption of non-vegetarian food by the higher castes, especially the Brahmins. In Upanishads, the concepts of karma and ahimsa emerged. While the Upanishads do not overtly advocate vegetarianism, compassion for all living beings tops the list of the virtues to be cultivated by renouncers. The battle of the Vedic sacrifice was actually won by the Buddhists and the Jains. Many people found the moral and ethical teachings of the new movements an attractive alternative to the expensive rituals of the Brahmins. Those rituals placed a great burden on the farmers who had to donate their livestock. The rulers’ administrative cost also grew exponentially for arranging them.

With regard to food, the rules of Jainism are the most stringent of any religion as meat products are absolutely prohibited. Buddha himself favoured non-injury and was strongly opposed to ritual sacrifice, yet he permitted his followers animal flesh on occasions, if the killing had been unintentional.

Another circumstance relevant to the development of vegetarianism in India was the sheer variety of vegetarian foodstuffs available even from the Indus Civilization times. Conducive climate, abundance of freshwater and fertile soil – all contributed to such growth. It is perhaps no exaggeration to say that nowhere else in the world except in India would it have even been possible to be a vegetarian in those very ancient times.

Archaeological evidence and literature from South India show that meat products were widely used and consumed by people. In fact, the Tamil word ‘meen’ for fish even entered the Sanskrit language. Eastern India also has a very long tradition of eating fish and meat. During the Middle Ages, for the first time, texts on food were composed, notably Manasolassa and Lokopakra. Both have plenty of references to meat. Some of the Manasolassa’s meat recipes are complex and highly aromatic, belying the notion that elaborate meat dishes appeared only with the arrival of the Muslims. Kebab is one such preparation.

It is undeniable that the Muslims added a variety to the non-vegetarian diet – from biriyani to stuffed paratha, nihari to samosa. At the same time, Ksemakutuhalam (dietetics and well-being), a Sanskrit treatise written during the mid-16th century, mentions many meat and fish preparations. Although the Europeans brought new meat dishes, they also introduced many vegetables originally grown in the western hemisphere and were assimilated into Indian cuisine, including potato, cauliflower, carrot and cabbage.

So, history categorically proves that Hindus have a long association with meat. Moreover, Hinduism is a plural religion with numerous varieties in their ways of cultural lives including food habits. Studies have shown that over 70 percent of Indians are non-vegetarians with extreme variance of food habits among the states. While some states like West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Telangana, have above 90 percent non-vegetarian population, Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab are states with the lowest percentage of non-vegetarians. Curiously, Gujarat has 40 percent non-vegetarian population!

Devdutt Pattanaik has no qualms in declaring that many Hindu supremacists are trying to reframe Hinduism by creating a checklist of ‘Hindu’ behaviours projecting ‘non-vegetarianism’ as an inferior act. Even all Brahmins are not vegetarians. In Bengal, Brahmins eat fish, and sacrifice goats and buffalo to Goddess Kali. However, the Brahmins in North and South India are vegetarians, except the Kashmiri Brahmins.

Various international human rights instruments have recognised “right to food” as an integral part of “right to adequate living”. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has described the core content of the right to food by three ‘A’s – accessibility, availability and adequacy; and adequate food should also be culturally acceptable. So, depriving a non-vegetarian Hindu of his choice of food for two months (add some political whims during festivals like Navratri) in a year is culturally unacceptable and affects his right to adequate food. It very well comes under the purview of our right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution.

As Sen notes that with economic liberalisation, urbanization has increased and an affluent Indian ‘middle class’ has emerged, leading to the changes in our eating patterns. One of these changes is an increase in the consumption of meat, especially chicken.

Several cities have become a hub for such new middle class with cosmopolitan culture and undoubtedly, Gurugram is one of India’s fastest growing cities. Its population increased by 74 percent between 2001 and 2011. The city houses over 2 million people today with a large number of migrants from various parts of the country, many of whom are predominantly non-vegetarian. The MCG councillors, instead of forcing its residents to follow vegetarianism on some absurd logic, should make an effort in transforming Gurugram into a truly cosmopolitan, liberal and modern city.