Sri Lanka government Minister raises voice against Halal certification

Sri Lanka Minister of Research and Technology Patali Champika Ranawaka today requested all food producers to remove the Halal certificate before the Sinhala and Tamil New Year.
He warned that his party Sinhala Buddhist Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) would take action unless the producers would not heed to their demand. He said that All Ceylon Jamiyaathul Ulama (ACJU) organization had no legal right to issue certificates for productions. He charged that the ACJU is trying to divide the country through religious lines. Addressing a press briefing of the JHU, parliamentarian Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thero said that only Sri Lanka Standards Institute should issue certificates related to food quality. He said that the Halal certificate is violation of rights of 91 percent non-Muslim Sri Lankans. Meanwhile, another Muslim organization Sri Lanka Jamiyaathul Ulama (SLJU) also criticized the ACJU for issuing Halal certificates for money.