The municipal corporation in Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi has closed down a decades-old goat market ahead of Bakrid, claiming that it had received complaints about overcrowding and poor sanitation, The Indian Express reported on Thursday.Bakrid, also known as Eid al-Adha, is a Muslim festival that commemorates the spirit of sacrifice. The festival, which is traditionally marked by the slaughtering of goats, will be observed on Thursday this year. Popularly known as the “Bakra Market”, or goat market, Benia Bagh is a seasonal livestock market that has operated for nearly four decades. It is considered one of eastern Uttar Pradesh’s largest goat markets.It is located about a km from the Kashi Vishwanath Temple and usually operates for a week ahead of Bakrid.Permission for the market had initially been granted, but was later revoked following “complaints related to sanitation and hygiene”, Municipal Commissioner Himanshu Nagpal was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.He claimed that the decision was taken after officials inspected the site. The authorities then sealed the 6,000-square-foot site four days after trading began.This prompted protests from livestock traders, who said the action was taken without adequate notice.They alleged that officials had ordered them to vacate the market within 30 minutes.Shakambhari Nandan Sonthalia, the public relations officer for Smart City Varanasi, denied the allegation. He said that permission for the market had been revoked on Friday and traders were given three days to vacate the site.When traders and shopkeepers did not leave, teams from the administration and police cleared the area on Monday and enforced the closure, The Indian Express quoted unidentified officials as saying. Opposition parties alleged that the action was taken to create communal tensions ahead of Bakrid, according to the newspaper. “Nobody had any problem while the market was functioning,” Congress’ Uttar Pradesh unit president Ajay Rai was quoted as saying. “Granting the permission for the market first, and then abruptly withdrawing it, appears to be a deliberate move by the government.”Dilip Dey, the president of the Samajwadi Party’s Varanasi metropolitan unit, also alleged that the government was “looking for excuses to create communal tension”.Edited by Sneha.