AHMEDABAD: BJP MLA Kumar Kanani accused Gujarat's health machinery of turning a blind eye to the “poison in the plate”, referring to the rampant food adulteration across the state.
In a letter to Health Minister Praful Panseriya, Kanani demanded laws and strict enforcement against adulteration mafias, warning that “those who mix poison in food are no less than terrorists.”
In an intra-party rebuke, BJP MLA Kumar Kanani has accused the Gujarat administration of being a “silent spectator” while food adulteration spreads like an epidemic across the state.
Sounding a public health alarm, Kanani, a former health minister, penned a detailed letter to Health Minister Praful Panseriya, who was recently elevated to Cabinet rank, urging him to take strict action against adulteration mafias.
“The system acts as if it is blind to the poison being mixed into people’s food,” Kanani wrote, adding how people who sell poison to millions through food adulteration walk free without any consequences.
In his letter, Kanani wrote how fake ghee, spurious paneer, contaminated spices, and adulterated oils flood Gujarat’s markets, reaching the remotest villages through small dairies and grocery shops.
He alleged that the offenders often walk free after paying a fine of just a few thousand rupees and return to business as usual.
“There is no fear among those who adulterate food or manufacture fake medicines,” he wrote.
“Samples are collected, reports prove them fake, and yet they are released after a token fine while citizens continue to consume poison.”
“Those who mix poison in people’s food are not traders; they are silent terrorists. They are killing innocents every day," he added.
He demanded that the state enact strict, enforceable laws with harsher punishments, saying mere administrative fines have failed to deter the mafia.
Kanani reminded Panseriya that he had raised the issue multiple times with the Chief Minister, the former Health Minister Hrishikesh Patel, and even inside the Legislative Assembly, but little had changed.
“I trust you,” Kanani wrote to Panseriya. “You are honest, educated, and have the will to work. The people and I believe you can bring a strict law in the upcoming Assembly session and ensure its full implementation.”
The MLA’s letter comes at a time when food inspectors across Gujarat have recently seized fake ghee, tobacco, spices, and instant noodles, exposing a vast underground network of counterfeit production.
Experts have warned that such adulterated food items can cause cancer, respiratory illness, and chronic stomach diseases, sometimes even leading to death, but proving direct culpability in court remains difficult.
Public health activists say Kanani’s rare outburst from within the ruling party underscores growing concern over the state’s slow response to an issue that directly affects millions.
