Why Did Zomato Suspend Delivery Of Non-Vegetarian Food On Jan 22 In Some States?

Food delivery app Zomato temporarily suspended deliveries of non-vegetarian items in a few states on January 22 following government directives. The platform complied with the direction on Monday to show respect towards the inauguration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

However, the delivery of non-vegetarian food is available on January 23 by the app. The suspension was only for one day in honour of the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony as the event held both great religious and cultural significance in the Hindu religion.

People from the respective states started complaining on X about the unavailability of non-vegetarian food items on the app while placing orders.

Zomato on its X handle of Zomato Care then shared this message, "Hi, we have disabled delivery of non-veg items in Uttar Pradesh, Assam, ⁠Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan as per govt. notice. Hope this clarification helps!"

On the other hand, Zomato's competitor Swiggy already informed restaurants on its platform that the Uttar Pradesh government has mandated statewide prohibition of the sale of meat, fish and liquor on January 22 in observance of the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony.

"In accordance with this mandate, Swiggy will be switching off all non-veg items on your menu on January 22," the message said. "These items will be switched on again on January 23."

The move aligns with the decision of several states, including Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Madhya Pradesh, to prohibit the sale of meat and fish on January 22.

"We sought clarifications and have been advised by the food commissioner to avoid the sale and service of non-vegetarian food as the sale of meat in butchery shops is already prohibited for Monday," said Varun Khera, head of the National Restaurant Association of India's Uttar Pradesh

Similarly, Assam's Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced the closing of meat shops until 4 PM on Monday for the Ram Temple event in Ayodhya. He asked all the restaurants in the state to avoid serving non-vegetarian foods until 2 PM.

Not only meat but liquor too was banned in a few states although social media users said that the government was restricting citizen's right to choose their food due to majoritarian sentiments.