3 min readNew DelhiJan 6, 2024 05:37 PM IST
First published on: Jan 6, 2024 at 05:00 AM IST
The Supreme Court on Friday issued a notice to the Uttar Pradesh government on two separate pleas challenging the Constitutional validity of the UP government’s notification “prohibiting the manufacturing, storage, sale, and distribution of food products with Halal certification within the State of Uttar Pradesh, except for items produced for export”.
One of the petitioners — Halal India Pvt Ltd, which claimed to be an “internationally recognised halal certification provider” — called the notification “an attack on the followers of Islam religion…”. Another petitioner is Jamiat Ulama-e-Maharashtra.
A bench of Justices B R Gavai and Sandeep Mehta initially said that the high court could also consider the issue but the petitioners argued that the notification issued by the Office of the Commissioner, Food Safety and Drug Administration, UP, on November 18, 2023, has pan-India ramifications and would impact inter-state commerce.
They contended that a similar position has not been taken for practices of other religions or denominations. They submitted it will have a significant impact on public health, and on religious practices, affecting the freedom of religion. The plea by Halal India Pvt Ltd, filed through advocate Ejaz Maqbool, submitted that the “widespread impact of the Impugned notification and the ban… has instilled fear in the populace all across India”.
It also added that “pertinently, impugned notification and FIR have had nationwide repercussions that have particularly affected a certain religious minority i.e., the Islamic community and have created apprehension that the practice initiated by the Respondent State may be replicated by other states, intensifying the pervasive fear. This apprehension is substantiated by instances wherein leaders of other States have advocated for a similar ban”.
The Supreme Court, meanwhile, turned down the petitioner’s request to direct that no coercive action be taken in pursuance of the notification and said it would look into the request later.
The Halal India plea also sought quashing an FIR filed on November 11, 2023, at the Hazratganj police station in UP “against the petitioners and other entities under Sections 120-B, 153-A, 298, 384, 420, 467,468,471 and 505 of the IPC”.
The FIR, it said, alleged “without any iota of truth or any evidence that they were issuing forged halal certificates for financial gains which violates public trust…” and that “the sale of halal certified products, fosters social animosity”.
The petition contended that the allegations in the FIR “are false and baseless and based only on hearsay and the FIR has primarily been lodged only to target a particular community”.
Petitioner Halal India also said “the impugned notification further states that the halal certification which was mentioned on certain food products and on products like such as soap, oil, facial creams, toothpastes etc., created confusion regarding the quality of food items and deemed it to be inconsistent with the Food Safety and Standards Act of 2006…”.
It added that “the impugned notification further states that such certifications can be granted only by the competent authority under Section 29 of the Act… However, interestingly, there exists no such certifying authority approved by the respondents…”.
One of the petitioners — Halal India Pvt Ltd, which claimed to be an “internationally recognised halal certification provider” — called the notification “an attack on the followers of Islam religion...”. Another petitioner is Jamiat Ulama-e-Maharashtra. (Express File Photo) 
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