The Modi government is facing criticism for restricting the official dinner of the BRICS summit in New Delhi to “vegetarian food”.

Among the 10 dishes that were hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Masoud Maghedekian and other world leaders, the Modi government did not include any food that was made of meat, fish or eggs.

The British newspaper The Telegraph has written that the Modi government is being accused of force-feeding “veg food”. The opposition called this move a display of “short-sightedness” by Modi.

Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi wrote on social media that 80 percent of India’s population are meat eaters and India’s “non-veg” is very tasty.

Congress leader Waris Pathan said that Modiji must promote vegetarian food, but do not limit Indian food culture to vegetarian food.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiran Roy Jeju responded by saying that the Congress is now playing politics on the food menu as well.

The British newspaper wrote that the matter of food in India is also a matter of caste and religion. “Vegetarian food” is the choice of Hindu Brahmins.

Modi government wants vegetarian food to be declared as national food. “Non-veg food” consisting of eggs, meat and fish, which are favored by Muslims, Dalits and Christians, remain on the sidelines.

In BJP-dominated provinces, meat sales and slaughterhouses are banned near Hindu religious events.