Delhi slaughter houses and meat shops urged to close on January 22

New Delhi: In a move aimed at acknowledging and respecting the sentiments associated with the "pran pratishtha" ceremony in Ayodhya, all slaughterhouses, meat, and fish shops in Delhi have been requested to suspend operations on January 22.

Irshad Qureshi, the general secretary of the Delhi Meat Merchant Association, made an appeal on Saturday, urging all meat and fish traders to close their establishments on January 22 in honour of the Ram temple consecration ceremony in Ayodhya.

The primary objective behind this appeal is to foster unity and harmony between communities, according to Irshad Qureshi. "We have made an appeal to all slaughterhouses and meat and fish sellers to close their shops on January 22 to show respect to the celebration of our Hindu brothers and sisters on the occasion of Ram temple inauguration," he stated.

Qureshi emphasised that the temporary closure for a day would not significantly impact the traders, highlighting the importance of respecting the sentiments of both communities.

Additionally, several restaurants in Delhi's Connaught Place have announced their decision not to serve non-vegetarian food to customers on January 22.

Amit Gupta, the joint secretary of the New Delhi Traders Association (NDTA), mentioned that many restaurants in Connaught Place have pledged to offer only vegetarian food on the day of the "pran pratishtha" ceremony in Ayodhya.

The "pran pratishtha" ceremony in Ayodhya is scheduled for January 22 and will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with various VVIPs.