Goa: BJP MLA wants meat complex in state as it has large number of 'beef eaters'

Goa BJP legislator has demanded the opening of Goa meat complex in the state, claiming that there is a huge shortage of beef in the state.

''I want the minister to tell me when Goa meat complex will start and whether there will be an interference from so-called 'gau rakshaks'. I respect them but there are people in Goa in large numbers who eat beef. You cannot stop that, '' BJP MLA Michael Lobo said.

Lobo made these remarks while speaking in the Goa Assembly on Wednesday.

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Lobo said that his remarks will not be well received by some people, but that will not stop him from saying the truth.

''Some may not like the way I am talking. If we do not want beef to come from Karnataka and Maharashtra, then certified cattle in Goa should be slaughtered at govt meat complex,'' the BJP legislator said, adding that, ''It has to start.''

The firebrand BJP MLA also came down heavily on the cow vigilantes who were blocking the entry of beef into the state.

''Some so-called cow protectors are standing at the state border and blocking the entry for beef being brought to Goa. Goa meat complex is shut. We've failed on this front. There are many meat eaters in Goa, '' Lobo said.

Beef ban was badly affecting tourism in the state, he said.

''Tourists come here to eat beef. There is a huge shortage of beef in Goa,'' Lobo said.

The statement from Lobo comes at a time when several right-wing outfits and their leaders have urged people, especially Muslims, to shun beef so as to prevent the incidents of mob lynching.