Kashmir’s rotten meat scandal has exposed not just tainted food but a deeper rot in trade ethics, demanding accountability within society before blaming the system.
Kashmir is in shock. A rotten meat racket, exposed not by regulators but by an unsuspecting auto driver, has shaken the very foundations of Kashmir’s food culture. Nearly twenty tons of meat, unfit for human consumption, were thrown away after the exposure, and what was once whispered about is now a matter of public shame. For a land globally celebrated for the Wazwan, its culinary pride and cultural identity, to be caught selling dog-food grade meat to its own people is an unpardonable betrayal.
The consequences have been immediate and devastating. Restaurants, which had boomed in recent years as Kashmiris developed a new taste for dining out, now stand deserted. No one trusts them anymore. Thousands of jobs have been lost. Insiders admit it will take a long time to restore public confidence. The crisis is not simply about food safety; it is about broken trust, the corrosion of trade ethics, and the silence of institutions that should have spoken out long ago.
While the government now scrambles to trace the network, the debate is misdirected. People are asking why this happened, when the real question should be who made it happen. No names are being revealed, no heads have rolled. Trade insiders whisper of “big fish” yet untouched. The lack of transparency is alarming in an issue that extends beyond commerce to encompass culture, identity, and the health of society itself.
Kashmir’s trade must shoulder the first share of blame. The government comes next. After 2019, when the historic Lakhanpur check-post was shut down and physical verification of goods ended, unscrupulous traders exploited the new freedom. Instead of ensuring quality, they brought in whatever promised them quick profit. Why is trade not looking inward? Why are religious leaders silent? Why are politicians avoiding the tough questions?
The truth is that Kashmir’s trade has followed this pattern for generations. Craft dealers sold Kashmiri handicrafts in the world’s most premium markets, but paid the artisans back home humiliatingly low wages. The younger generation turned its back on crafts because it offered nothing compared to the daily wage of a labourer. The same mindset, of squeezing profit while disregarding dignity, fairness, and quality, has now poisoned Kashmir’s food culture.
Kashmir must stop blaming everything on the system or Delhi. The rot lies within as much as without. Trade bodies, from the Kashmir Chamber to FCIK, must demand accountability not from the outside alone, but from within. Why must tourists still be sold fake Pashmina as handmade? Why must Kashmiri households be served poisoned meat?
It is time to confront uncomfortable truths. Unless Kashmir reforms its trade practices, ensures honesty in its markets, and restores transparency, no conspiracy theory and no loud blame game will save it.
