It will take seven days for officials to determine the type of meat that was seized from Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna Railway Station after cow vigilante and murder accused Puneet Kerehalli claimed dog meat was being sold as other meat.
Bengaluru police seized 90 cartons of meat that was being transported to Bengaluru by train from Jaipur at the Okalipuram entrance of the railway station on Saturday, July 26. Puneet, who is accused of killing cattle trader Idrees Pasha, barged into the railway station along with his associates on Saturday evening, claiming that a recently unloaded shipment was dog meat.
Health and Family Welfare Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao told TNM that it would take seven days for the results of the meat samples to come back.
However, food safety officials have told the media that the meat is goat meat, of a breed that is usually bred in Rajasthan and Gujarat.
The parcel belonged to Abdul Razaak, a meat trader who sources meat from Rajasthan. The commotion was telecast live on Kannada news channels, showing Kerehalli and media personnel forcing Abdul to open the cartons. Abdul 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 licenses. The meat comes from Jaipur and is tested for quality. These allegations are fabricated. No illegal activity is involved.”
Meanwhile, the Karnataka Food Safety and Standards Department officials along with police 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.
“Samples were collected and sent to a food laboratory to determine the species of the animals. The Food Safety and Standards Department is awaiting analysis reports, which will guide further legal actions. Detailed information about the FSSAI licenses of both the senders and recipients of the parcels is being gathered. Any discrepancies will result in further legal actions as per regulations,” Karnataka Food Safety and Standards Department said in a statement.
Kerehalli had claimed that six tonnes of meat arrive daily from Rajasthan. “The meat is then mixed with dog meat and sold in Russell Market and mutton shops. The stale meat, which is 75 to 80 hours old, is cleaned in vinegar to appear fresh,” he claimed.
As tensions escalated, the Cottonpet police arrested Puneeth Kerehalli and his associates around 9:30 pm on Friday, for preventing the public officials from carrying out their duties. Although Puneet was granted station bail, he complained of illness and was taken to a hospital. Three FIRs were registered, two against Puneet and his associates, and one over the transportation of meat that was suspected to be dog meat.
Puneeth Kerehalli, leader of the far-right Hindutva group Rashtra Rakshana Pade, has a history of intercepting cattle transport vehicles and posting videos proclaiming his love for cows. With ties to the Bharatiya Janata Party, Kerehalli campaigns against Muslim vendors near Hindu temples and opposes halal food in Karnataka.
