Stories about awful landlords in India's metro cities often go viral on social media, sparking widespread debate. These posts often highlight tenant-landlord disputes over unreasonable demands, deposits, broken agreements or evictions. Now, a recent X user has reignited the discussion online after sharing a screenshot of a landlord's "veg only" tenants' demand. X user Prashanth Rangaswamy, a resident of Chennai, shared a screenshot of the message he received from a prospective landlord.
"Sorry sir. Looking at veg families only," the message read. Mr Rangaswamy captioned this with a quirky remark. "Eating non-veg is injurious to finding flats for rent in Chennai," he wrote.
Take a look below:
The post has sparked a debate online, with many users expressing their frustration over food-based discrimination.
"I've been a vegetarian almost all my life. I lived my entire life in Europe in the middle of meat eaters. Thus, I find such restrictions very pathetic. As far as I know, people choose to be vegetarian to eat a diet that aligns with personal ethics," wrote one user.
"The problem is the veg only renters own multiple apts in the affluent neighbourhoods. It's very difficult for others to get a flat for rent. Forget rent, some don't even let others buy the flats owned by them! Will take 2-3 more generations for balance to be restored," commented another.
"Few people reject tenants based on caste or religion too. For example, if you are a Muslim, they simply say: sorry, we don't rent to Muslims," one person commented.
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However, several users defended the landlord's decision, saying that the homeowners have the right to decide who lives in their property.
"I too eat nonveg but It's their property so it's upto them to whom they want to give.if they are vegetarian and they don't want non veg in their property it's their right," wrote one user.
"Though it is wrong and illogical but still it's his house so he has full right to choose his tenants," expressed another.
"I'm honestly torn on this. I've had vegetarian friends tell me the smell of meat makes them feel physically ill. I can't imagine forcing someone to live next to my mutton and beef if it genuinely unsettles them. I do sort of get it," commented a third user.
