Mewat gang rape, beef biryani row trivial issues, says Haryana CM

"These are trivial issues and I don`t pay much attention to these small issues," Khattar told reporters.

Gurgaon: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Saturday dubbed the controversy over beef found in biryani and the gang rape of two sisters in Mewat as a "trivial issue".

"These are trivial issues and I don`t pay much attention to these small issues. Today we should be talking about Swarna Jayanti celebrations and achievements of Haryana government," Khattar told reporters.

The Chief Minister was talking to the media on the sidelines of an event to celebrate 50 years of Haryana.

On August 25, a couple was beaten to death and two of their relatives, including a woman and a minor, allegedly gang raped after being held hostage by five armed robbers in Dhingeri village of Tauroo in Mewat, 45 km from Gurgaon.

Even as the murder and gang rape incident rocked Mewat, a new controversy erupted after beef was found in samples of biryani collected in the region. Haryana has banned beef consumption.

A state-run veterinary office that tested the samples stated that beef was used in the biryani being sold in the district.

Earlier, on the direction of the Haryana government, Haryana Cow Protection Task Force in charge DIG Bharti Arora, and Gau Sewa Aayog Chairman Bhani Ram Mangla, ahead of Eid held a drive to check biryani for beef and collected seven samples from Mewat.

Later, Haryana Minister Anil Vij said all seven samples were found to contain beef during laboratory tests at the Lala Lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences in Hisar.