Uttar Pradesh’s halal branding ban: Strategy to subjugate Muslims?

The ban stifles Muslim businesses, silencing their cultural voice through market control.

During the raid conducted on halal-certified products in Gorakhpur on November 22. According to a Uttar Pradesh government notification, halal labelling on medicines and cosmetic products amounts to misleading the consumer about the safety of the products. | Photo Credit: ANI

As the parliamentary election approaches, the BJP in Uttar Pradesh seems to be employing a polarising strategy that is reminiscent of its approach in the Assembly elections in 2017 and 2022. Critics say that several of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s policies were aimed at “othering and disciplining” the State’s 19 per cent Muslim population in a bid to consolidate Hindu votes while in both elections, Muslim votes were almost irrelevant to deciding the outcome.

LISTEN: The action has fuelled worries among Muslims, with many wondering whether halal meat shops would be the next target.

On November 18, Anita Singh, Commissioner, Food Safety, and Additional Chief Secretary, Uttar Pradesh Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) Department, issued a notification stating that labelling dairy products, bakery, oil, snacks, edible oil, medicines, medical devices, and cosmetics as “halal” was an offence against the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. Banning the production, storage, distribution, and sale of halal-certified products, the notification says: “The halal certification of food products is a parallel system that creates confusion and is against the law. Halal labelling on medicines and cosmetic products amounts to misleading the consumer about the safety of food products.”

The Commissioner told the media that only the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) was authorised to issue certificates. The notification, however, exempted products meant for export. The notification came a day after Shailendra Kumar Sharma, a businessman and a member of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, lodged an FIR at Lucknow’s Hazratganj Police Station against agencies such as Halal India Private Limited (Chennai), Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust (New Delhi), Halal Council of India (Mumbai), Jamiat Ulama Maharashtra, and a few others for issuing halal certificates to a range of products.

The FIR was registered under Indian Penal Code Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 384 (extortion), 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document), 153A (promoting enmity between different groups), and 298 (intent to wound religious feelings).

It alleged that halal certification and branding was based on fake documents to deceive customers of a particular religion. It further alleged that sales of products of companies run by non-Muslim businessmen were affected unfairly because of it. The FIR also noted that money raised through halal certification could be used to fund terrorist and anti-national organisations. The government instantly handed over the case to a Special Task Force of the State police.

The global halal economy

The Arabic term “halal” refers to an act or object that is permissible as against “haram” or prohibited under Islam. The global halal economy was estimated to be worth $3.2 trillion in 2024, and has spawned the rise of halal tourism and even medicines, cosmetics, and mineral water.

Although some halal-certifying bodies in India have accreditation from authorities in export-destination countries, in India the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and the Halal Shariat Islamic Law Board are the only two bodies registered with the National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB), a constituent board of the Quality Council of India, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, to certify halal products. While the Shariat Islamic Law Board is authorised to certify food products, the Jamiat’s unit can certify only meat. Both organisations have raised concerns over the ban.

Dignitaries at the India International Halal Expo in Hyderabad on January 18, 2020. The global halal economy has been estimated to be worth $3.2 trillion in 2024. | Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL

Following the notification, FSDA officials asked retailers and department stores across the State, including in areas that are part of the National Capital Region, to withdraw any halal-certified items from their shelves within 15 days. According to media reports, as many as 92 State-based manufacturers using halal endorsements from allegedly non-certified organisations have been directed to withdraw their products from the market.

The action has fuelled worries among Muslims, with many wondering whether halal meat shops would be the next target. “There is no clarity in the government order as to whether the ban will also be applicable to meat products or not. If it is, it will badly affect communities that consume only halal meat,” said Areeb Uddin, a lawyer, adding, “The ban order is vague and arbitrary. An absolute ban on parallel halal certification is clearly discriminatory in nature as it defies rationality.”

Uddin pointed out that the same logic was not applied to the export of halal products because of business interests. On October 5, India and the UAE signed a memorandum of understanding for, among others, licensing arrangements, sharing of “best practices relating to science and technology policies”, “standardization, metrology, conformity assessment, accreditation, and Halal certification”.

The Adityanath government recently prohibited the sale of meat along the Kanwar Yatra route. It declared November 25 as a no-meat day to mark the birth anniversary of Sadhu T.L. Vaswani, who had advocated a vegetarian lifestyle. This is in addition to the birth anniversaries of Mahavira, the Buddha, and Gandhi that are observed as “no non-veg days”.

Ajay Gudavarthy, associate professor, Centre for Political Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, and author of India after Modi: Populism and the Right, linked the order with the BJP-RSS’ cultural-nationalist politics. “They are signifying all cultural and religious practices of Muslims as anti-national,” he told Frontline. He described the recent notification as employing the same strategy of “purity and pollution” to demonise and marginalise Muslims as the BJP’s political campaigns on “love jehad”, “triple talaq”, cow protection, and the confiscation of properties and bulldozing of the houses of mostly Muslims.

Legal measures

Critics believe the idea of halal is more about faith than about law, trade, and business. Mufti Habeeb Yusuf Qasmi, president of the Halal Council of India, said the controversy resulted from people adopting a narrow perspective on Hindu-Muslim relations. According to Mansoor Khan, president of the Sufi Islamic Board, the order had a communal tinge. “Every religion has certain laws about what is halal and what is haram. It is not just Muslims who have such rules,” Khan was quoted as saying in The Free Press Journal.

The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust reacted strongly to the allegations in the FIR. “All financial transactions are duly accounted for, with proper GST and income tax payments and thorough auditing, ensuring complete legality and transparency in our operations,” said Niaz A. Farooqui, CEO of the trust, in a statement. “In response to the baseless allegations aimed at tarnishing our image, Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust will take necessary legal measures to counter such misinformation.”

Arguing that false claims against halal certification directly undermined national interests, he said: “Halal trade stands as a significant $3.5 trillion industry, and India benefits from its promotion in exports and tourism, particularly with our crucial trade partners in the OIC [Organisation of Islamic Cooperation] countries and South-East Asia.”

The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust’s halal certificates are recognised by different governments and authorities across the world, said Farooqui. “Authorities in countries like Malaysia (JAKIM), Indonesia, Thailand (CICOT), Singapore (MUIS), South Korea (MFDS), Qatar (MoH), UAE (MOIAT, ESMA & EIAC), Saudi Arabia (SFDA), SASO (Saudi Arabia), and GCC countries (GAC) recognise our certificate and we have accreditation from them,” he said. “We are a member of the World Halal Food Council. Halal certification not only aids halal consumers but also offers informed choices to all consumers.”

At a shop in Bengaluru. Critics believe the idea of halal is more about faith than about law, trade, and business. | Photo Credit: The Hindu Archives

Maintaining that halal certification is not merely a requirement for importing countries but also for tourists visiting India, Farooqui said: “We adhere to government regulations, as emphasised in the Ministry of Commerce & Industry notification, requiring all halal certification bodies to be registered by the NABCB under the Quality Council of India.”

Highlights

• The Uttar Pradesh government has ruled that labelling dairy products, bakery, oil, snacks, medicines, and cosmetics as “halal” is illegal and misleading, citing violation of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. The notification, however, has exempted products meant for export.
• India’s Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and Halal Shariat Islamic Law Board are the only two bodies registered with the National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB) to certify halal products. Some halal-certifying bodies in India have accreditation from authorities in export-destination countries.
• The ban raised concerns among Muslims regarding the potential targeting of halal meat shops. The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Halal Trust says its halal certificates are recognised by different governments and authorities across the world and plans to take legal measures to counter misinformation against it.

‘Muted prejudice’

Gudavarthy sees a “muted prejudice” in the government order. “They are appropriating modern sensibilities, scientific temper, and everything that we believe is progressive for what is essentially a socially conservative project aimed at the marginalisation of Muslims. They have been using the language of science, rights, equality, law, institutions… for furthering an agenda which is conservative and sectarian.”

Gudavarthy cited the examples of the triple talaq ban and Uttar Pradesh’s law on love jehad. “The triple talaq ban criminalises Muslim men but doesn’t entitle Muslim women to alimony. It was projected in terms of gender justice but it didn’t end up empowering women,” he said.

On the law on love jehad, he said: “They are not saying that they are against all interfaith marriages though the final goal seems to be to criminalise all social interactions between religious communities. In the process, they are talking about women’s safety and their rights.”

In the 2023 Karnataka Assembly election, the BJP had raised the “hijab-halal” bogey to polarise voters. Last year, many public figures, including the Bollywood actor and former BJP parliamentarian Paresh Rawal, endorsed the call for Hindus to boycott halal products. At the centre of the storm was a Bengaluru-based Ayurvedic firm owned by a Muslim family. Similarly, in recent years, global fast-food chains like McDonald’s and KFC have faced boycott calls from right-wing activists for allegedly serving halal meat. IndiGo was also under fire for serving non-vegetarian products prepared in halal-certified facilities.

The targeting seems to be selctive. In 2022, Haldiram’s was targeted for selling halal-certified snacks. But many companies such as Adani Wilmar Ltd (food products), Reliance Industries Ltd, Tata Consumer Products, Tata Consumer Chemicals, Parle Products, and Ramdev Food Products Pvt. Ltd have been selling halal-certified products.

Weaponising halal certification?

The BJP has clearly weaponised halal certification to invoke Islamophobia and justify its communal politics. Soon after the government’s notification, BJP leader and Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh linked “halal-certified” products with “Islamisation of businesses”, “jeziya tax”, “jehad”, and “terrorist activities”. He shared on X (formerly Twitter) a letter he wrote to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar asking him to take a cue from the Adityanath government.

While most opposition politicians have remained silent on the issue, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti slammed the BJP for creating turmoil in the country.

Shafiqur Rahman Barq, the Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal, accused the Adityanath government of using the ban order to spread hatred against Muslims. “These steps are being taken to harass Muslims,” he said. “Such policies are being brought up with an eye on the upcoming elections.”

In neighbouring Uttarakhand, another BJP-ruled State, the Haridwar Police booked a Muslim youth on November 10 for selling chicken eggs at Har Ki Pauri, a ghat on the banks of the Ganga, after a group of people alleged that he had hurt their religious sentiments.

Earlier, the BJP had demanded a ban on halal branding in Kerala. But the party had to step back following a strong backlash from opposition parties and a leading hoteliers’ union.

In November 2021, the Kerala High Court, while hearing a petition concerning the propriety of using halal-certified jaggery for prasadam at the Sabarimala temple, asked the petitioner if he understood the concept of halal at all. “The concept of halal only says that certain things are prohibited; all other things are halal. This certification only says that those prohibited materials are not included in a particular product,” the court proclaimed, according to a Live Law report.

A petition filed by the advocate Vibhor Anand in April 2022 in the Supreme Court has asked for an order for the withdrawal of all halal-branded foods from the market. It argues that the practice of halal certification infringes on the rights of 85 per cent of the citizens.

Incidentally, in 2020, the apex court had dismissed a PIL petition challenging the practice of halal for slaughter of animals for food, telling the petitioner in no uncertain terms: “Tomorrow, you will say no one should eat meat.”

Union Home Minister Amit Shah recently told reporters in Telangana that the Centre had not taken any decision to ban the sale of halal-marketed products. But since his party leaders keep politicising such communal issues, his words have cut little ice with those keeping a close watch on the progressive intolerance of Hindutva politics.