Osmania University Beef Festival Leads To Violence

A beef festival organized by Dalit students at Osmania University in Hyderabad, India on April 15th erupted into violence, the BBC reports. About 100 members of the Hindu right wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarti Parishad (ABVP) protested the festival, leading to five injuries according to The Hindu report.

ABVP protested the beef festival on the ground that consumption of beef is against Hindu culture. Ramkrishna, senior ABVP leader told BBC, “Today they are asking for beef, tomorrow they will want alcohol.”

The purpose of the festival was to oppose “food fascism” in university hostels, reports NDTV. The festival organizers demanded beef be included in the university canteen menu as it is part of their “cultural identity.”

“The festival was intended to make the point that upper caste diktats over food habits need to be resisted, however another group of students opposed the idea on the grounds that it is against Indian culture,” a police official said in a quote reported by the NDTV.

More than 1500 students attended the beef festival and consumed various dishes made of beef according to the BBC report.

The beef festival was organized by the Telangana Students Association, Progressive Democratic Student Union, Student Federation of India and student groups from English and Foreign Languages University.

S. Satyanarayana, Osmania University vice-chancellor announced yesterday that there would be no change in the hostel menu, reports NewsWala.

Despite the violence, the organizers of the beef festival were generally pleased with the large turnout and aim to make this an annual event, reports Deccan Chronicle.

The incident sparked a lot of conversation on Twitter. Below are tweets by activists, politicians and journalists:

Comments

[SwamiWatch]

05:17 PM on 03/13/2013

Right wing or left wing, all fanatics of all religious faith and shades have a lot of time on their hands to complain and spread hatred. They have to be busy. I have a good solution.

BRING THE MILITARY DRAFT IN INDIA. EVERYONE MUST SERVE THE ARMED FORCES FOR 3 YEARS

I would like to see children from Gandhi family, Vadra family, and the families of Sharad Pawar, Abdullah, Chidambaram, Laloo Prasad, Sushil Kumar Shinde, Mulayam Singh Yadav, and other Congress, BJP and Shiva Sena and other politicians to join te Indian armed forced and fight on the front lines instead of getting western education, doing luxury vacations in Europe and spending Dad's money and getting away from the law with Dad's power. Would you like to see How Rahul Gandhi fight at the border? It is impossible to imagine, isn't it? But it is easy to imagine ourselves standing in lines, fight with shortages, pay for death certificates at municipalities. This is common for a common man and woman in India.

It is time to bring in military draft in India. Every boy and girl of 18 years of age must join the armed forces for 3 years. No exceptions except when they have terminal illness and are bed ridden. Everyone else must serve and obey the command and taste real discipline for a change.

[raviG]

03:45 PM on 07/31/2012

i would've supported the dalits if they directly attacked the people who have harmed them, not the docile animal that has zero power to discriminate against humans. very misguided and not a way to get public support behind them either.

[SukiTheCat]

10:14 AM on 06/06/2012

I don't agree with this because I am a vegetarian and don't agree with making animals suffer to prove some kind of point

[Leo Polk]

12:12 PM on 09/27/2012

This isn't about animal rights or anything. I am a vegetarian as well, but that doesn't mean all of the world should not eat meat. They are talking about religion, not food preference.

[CaptRuby]

09:03 PM on 05/27/2012

These same folks hopefully will follow this with "pork festival"....

Killing Innocent animals is not cause of celebration and bravery...

[Leo Polk]

12:15 PM on 09/27/2012

I agree thank you. At least your not saying that the world should revolve around you because YOU believe in something unrelated to the motives of the students like vegetarianism. (nothing against being a vegetarian, am one myself)

[nayana J]

08:08 AM on 05/24/2012

I want a tofu festival..

[johnnybrown1884]

01:20 AM on 04/27/2012

So to make a statement, poor innocent animals need to be slaughtered? I would oppose this festival on ethical grounds.

[Breathwatcher]

09:11 PM on 04/27/2012

Then you should also oppose Hinduism, Judaism and Christianity on ethical grounds since their holiest scriptures the Vedas and the Bible teach ritual animal sacrifice and the eating of the flesh of the sacrifice.

[johnnybrown1884]

09:35 PM on 04/29/2012

The Bible perhaps, but the fact the Vedas sanction such sacrifice is a typical concoction of colonial imperialists who have no knowledge of Sanskrit and make any translation they think they can!

[semichigander]

04:51 PM on 05/01/2012

Certainly one should oppose the barbaric practices of the semitic monotheists which include ritual animal sacrifice (and in the case of Christianity, human sacrifice as the centerpiece of the faith). The highest spiritual practices of the dharmic religions eschew meat in favor of a strict vegetarian diet. Since anyone with a passing familiarity with Hindu, Jain and Buddhist beliefs and practices would be familiar with this, I can only assume your background is Semitic monotheism, or you are referring to the essentially defunct practices of pre-Hindu Vedic religion. Alternatively, you might refer to left handed tantric practices, but those are a) hardly mainstream Hindu practices and b) largely employ symbolic sacrifice.

[kushyluv]

02:21 PM on 04/25/2012

I am waiting with baited breath for the "Pork Festival" at this bastion of enlightened progressives. After all others have th right to eat pork-so what if this muslim university. Down with the opression I say

[the analyzer]

12:27 AM on 04/25/2012

What are they trying to prove? And what is so 'progressive' and 'democratic' about this? I think there wasn't enough done to stop this.

[Shaas]

05:42 PM on 04/19/2012

Moreover, it is against the Indian Constitution!

[hagagaga]

10:59 AM on 04/20/2012

That doesn't necessarily mean that their constitution is not stupid.

[Shaas]

12:52 PM on 04/20/2012

Their constitution has been developed by a number of intelligent and educated people but you were produced only by your parents. So, the probability is there that you are much more stupid than the constitution - and so are your comments.
Not only from spiritual point of view is meat eating bad but also from the health point of view! And from ecological view, too!

[Quest2011]

07:12 PM on 05/14/2012

It is illegal to kill cows not bulls

[Tuskin Roberts]

02:13 PM on 04/19/2012

Eat beef, get drunk--don't eat beef, stay sober--or any combination of the two. Seems like any idiot could figure it out, but I guess it's not just ANY idiot that believes that a two thousand year old carpenter is listening to every thought that crosses their mind, or that people are born into certain social classes based on their performance in a past life.

Hooray, religion! So useful!

[nonChristian]

03:59 PM on 04/18/2012

I am a Hindu I don't care if anyone eats beef. I don't eat it (or any kind of meat) and I don't care if anyone else does.

BTW ,I am sick and tired of low caste(especially the former untouchables) people constantly whining about stuff and trying to create controversies. Its been over 50 years since casteism fell, get over the "victim" mentality now.

[Brianna Cole]

10:56 PM on 04/18/2012

Have you seen certain formerly oppressed people in America and the way (some) behave? Getting over the "victim" mentality is not easy for the people that have been put there and hold strong to a culture that still smells of it. It is easy for the former oppressors to say "get over it" though isn't it.

[AxisV]

03:44 AM on 04/19/2012

The caste system is alive and well.

[Lukester]

03:56 PM on 04/18/2012

"Where the beef?"

[Robert Kelley]

02:52 PM on 04/18/2012

Christ, I thought they were protesting serving beef in INDIANA!

Next they will want alcohol? The two go together great, especially a nice Syrah/Cabernet blend.

[nevertofarleft]

05:52 PM on 04/18/2012

i mis read the post too, beef in Indiana is great!

[MrSkye]

07:55 PM on 04/18/2012

Indian beef eaters are revolting .. should be the headline.

[xenubarb]

02:46 PM on 04/18/2012

Christians eat their god too.

[Pradip Gangopadhyay]

01:18 PM on 04/18/2012

Much ado over nothing. People should be free to eat what they want.

[sandalwood]

02:09 PM on 04/18/2012

Indeed. The Dharmas would have persons ask the following questions...

Who is it that eats beef or does not eat beef?
Who is it that is a dalit or not a dalit?
Who is it that is an upper caste Hindu or not an upper caste Hindu?
Who is it that believes in God or does not believe in God?
Who is it who calls themselves a Hindu or not a Hindu?