Tensions subside at Mira Road hsg soc, 51 goats removed

Tensions eased in Mira Road after police removed 51 goats ahead of Eid. Protests ensued, with arrests made amid clashes over the goats' presence.

MUMBAI: Tensions in a Mira Road housing society subsided on Wednesday, after the police and civic officials removed 51 goats from the premises ahead of Eid-al-Adha, or Bakri Eid on Thursday. Police also continued to maintain tight security at the Poonam Estate Cluster 1 complex, where the goats had been sheltered.

Tensions subside at Mira Road hsg soc, 51 goats removed

The presence of the goats had upset residents, who said keeping the animals there was unhygienic. They were also concerned about where the goats would be slaughtered.

On Wednesday, Kashimira Police registered three separate cases relating to hooliganism, raising religious slogans by 50 activists of Hindu right-wing organisations – and an attempt to introduce pigs into the housing society, as a counter-protest to those who had brought the goats. Police also arrested a young man who attacked a Bajrang Dal activist during a scuffle that broke out during the protests.

Trouble first broke out on Sunday, when VHP activists joined residents of the housing society agitating against goats being kept in a shed the housing complex. Although the shed was demolished by the municipal authorities, further protests and a scuffle took place over alleged attempts to rebuild the structure and because the goats had not bene removed.

Then, defying prohibitory orders, Bajrang Dal activists attempted to force pigs into the housing society premises. They faced off with the police and have been booked for obstructing public servants in the discharge of their duties, among other charges.

Cases have been registered against more than 50 individuals – including the Bajrang Dal activist Naganth Kamble, who was attacked with a knife – for violating prohibitory orders.

To prevent a recurrence of such incidents, officials of the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) met on Wednesday and decided to draft guidelines relating to sheltering goats in residential societies. Local MLA Narendra Mehta said it was a relief that guidelines are being drawn up. “Permission has been granted for the operation of three slaughterhouses in the Mira-Bhayandar region. Additionally, a proposal to set up a slaughterhouse on an open ground opposite NH School in Mira Road was tabled at Wednesday’s meeting,” he said.