Chickens killed by electric current may have reached Muslim eateries

SHAH ALAM: Chickens suspected of having been killed by electric current before slaughter at a processing plant raided in Puchong yesterday may have been supplied to Muslim-owned restaurants.

Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais) chairman Datuk Salehuddin Saidin said preliminary investigations found that the premises used the water-bath stunning method, with excessively high electric voltage believed to have caused the chickens to die before slaughter.

He said the council was concerned that the chickens supply had reached Muslim-owned restaurants.

"How can we allow these irresponsible people to do such a thing?" he said.

He urged Muslims, restaurant operators and food business owners to check the source of their chicken supplies and ensure that the food they serve is halal.

"If they (restaurants) do not care where their chicken supplies come from, (I am worried) this will cause Muslims to consume non-halal food," he said after the Selangor State-Level 2026 Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaah Fundamental Declaration programme.

Salehuddin said preliminary investigations found that the premises were believed to be Muslim-owned and had been operating for a long time.

He said the premises had been ordered to close for two weeks to facilitate investigations, adding that Mais, through the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais), would continue conducting integrated operations with other government agencies.

More than 6.5 tonnes of raw chickens suspected of being processed without complying with Islamic slaughtering and halal certification requirements were seized during the raid.

Twelve Bangladeshi and Pakistani men believed to be involved in the slaughtering and processing activities were also detained during Ops Taring Chiller.

The operation involved the police, Jais, the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim), the Department of Environment and the Petaling Health Office.

Under Islamic slaughtering requirements, chickens must be alive at the time of slaughter, with a sharp knife used to sever the throat and major blood vessels. Electrical stunning is permitted under halal standards only if it does not kill the poultry before slaughter.