Govt to form SIT to probe beef smuggling in Maha | Mumbai News

Mumbai: The state home ministry on Monday ordered a Special Investigation Team (SIT) inquiry into beef smuggling in Maharashtra, especially in the wake of the transportation of 57,000 kilos of beef found in March this year. The issue came up in the legislative council through a calling attention motion by MLC Shrikant Bhartiya.On March 25, 2025, two containers carrying approximately 57,000 kilos of beef were intercepted at Lonavla rural police station. The beef was being transported from Hyderabad to Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, Mumbai, for export by the company Asian Foods Meat Agro, Bhartiya informed the Upper House.“Following a preliminary investigation and a report from the forensic science laboratory, an FIR was filed on March 30. It was also noted that 20 to 25 tonnes of beef were being smuggled from Maharashtra’s Dharashiv district to Telangana. Despite a ban on the slaughter, sale, and transportation of cattle in Maharashtra, illegal cattle transport continues across the state,” he pointed out.Cases are being registered under the Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act, 1976 (amended in 1995), and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, to prevent cattle smuggling, minister of state for home Pankaj Bhoyar said. He further said that in 2025, as many as 76 cases were filed regarding beef smuggling in Dharashiv district alone.Home department statistics revealed that 2,849 cases were registered under the beef ban Act between 2022 and 2025, with 4,678 arrests and 1,724 tonnes of beef seized. Based on these figures, Bhoyar said the “issue was serious” and announced in the legislative council that an SIT investigation will be conducted into beef smuggling activities in the state.MLC Anil Parab from Shiv Sena (UBT) criticised the home department’s “ineffective implementation” of the beef ban law. He suggested that the significant quantity of beef seized in Lonavla and regular transportation from Dharashiv indicated involvement of an extensive network. He endorsed the call for an SIT investigation into the smuggling operation.“A criminal case under MCOCA should be filed against the vehicle drivers and owners caught for beef smuggling,” Bhartiya demanded.Govt to form SIT to probe beef smuggling in Maha Somit SenMumbai: The state home ministry on Monday ordered a Special Investigation Team (SIT) inquiry into beef smuggling in Maharashtra, especially in the wake of the transportation of 57,000 kilos of beef found in March this year. The issue came up in the legislative council through a calling attention motion by MLC Shrikant Bhartiya.On March 25, 2025, two containers carrying approximately 57,000 kilos of beef were intercepted at Lonavla rural police station. The beef was being transported from Hyderabad to Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, Mumbai, for export by the company Asian Foods Meat Agro, Bhartiya informed the Upper House.“Following a preliminary investigation and a report from the forensic science laboratory, an FIR was filed on March 30. It was also noted that 20 to 25 tonnes of beef were being smuggled from Maharashtra’s Dharashiv district to Telangana. Despite a ban on the slaughter, sale, and transportation of cattle in Maharashtra, illegal cattle transport continues across the state,” he pointed out.Cases are being registered under the Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act, 1976 (amended in 1995), and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, to prevent cattle smuggling, minister of state for home Pankaj Bhoyar said. He further said that in 2025, as many as 76 cases were filed regarding beef smuggling in Dharashiv district alone.Home department statistics revealed that 2,849 cases were registered under the beef ban Act between 2022 and 2025, with 4,678 arrests and 1,724 tonnes of beef seized. Based on these figures, Bhoyar said the “issue was serious” and announced in the legislative council that an SIT investigation will be conducted into beef smuggling activities in the state.MLC Anil Parab from Shiv Sena (UBT) criticised the home department’s “ineffective implementation” of the beef ban law. He suggested that the significant quantity of beef seized in Lonavla and regular transportation from Dharashiv indicated involvement of an extensive network. He endorsed the call for an SIT investigation into the smuggling operation.“A criminal case under MCOCA should be filed against the vehicle drivers and owners caught for beef smuggling,” Bhartiya demanded.