A lab report has identified the meat seized at Bengaluru's Okalipuram railway station as sheep meat, debunking the claims made by murder-accused cow vigilante Puneet Kerehalli. Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao on July 31, Wednesday, urged the public to refrain from spreading unsubstantiated rumours and to rely on official reports for accurate information.
The incident occurred on Saturday, July 26, when Bengaluru police seized 90 cartons of meat transported by train from Jaipur. Kerehalli, who is accused of killing cattle trader Idrees Pasha, alleged that the shipment contained dog meat. He, along with his associates, created a commotion at the railway station, leading to the seizure and subsequent investigation.
In response to the accusations that dog meat was being sold for consumption as other meat, and the ensuing media reports, the Karnataka Health Department had the meat samples tested. According to a press release, a total of 84 parcels were sent to the ICAR-National Meat Research Institute in Hyderabad for lab analysis.
The report dated July 30 said that the test was done using the Molecular Biomarker Analysis (DNA) testing method and the results confirmed that the meat was from “S: Ovis aries (sheep).”
Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao urged the public to refrain from spreading unsubstantiated rumours. “Now that the truth has been established, I urge the public to refrain from spreading unsubstantiated rumours and to rely solely on official reports for verification. Let us work together to maintain a well-informed and responsible community. Your cooperation is essential in preventing the spread of misinformation,” said the Health Minister.
The consignment belonged to Abdul Razaak, a trader sourcing the meat from Rajasthan. Amid the chaos on Sunday, surrounded by media and officials, Abdu insisted on waiting for relevant officials before opening the cartons. When Abdul opened one carton, he maintained that everything was legal. He said, “The meat is kept in an ice box. We have FSSAI, trade, and BBMP licences. The meat comes from Jaipur and is tested for quality. These allegations are fabricated. No illegal activity is involved.”
The Karnataka Food Safety and Standards Department officials along with police also inspected the railway station and found parcels transported from Rajasthan being loaded into a transport vehicle on the station's outer premises, uncovering 90 parcels containing animal meat.
Three FIRS were filed by the Cottonpet police, two of which booked Puneet and his associates for various offences. The third FIR was about the alleged transport of dog meat.
