They were celebrated by far-right Hindu groups as the latest in a series of legal measures intended to protect cows, which many Hindus consider sacred. A high court in the southern state of Tamil Nadu quickly imposed a four-week stay on the measure, saying it violated Indians’ constitutional right to freedom of religion and encroached on states’ rights.

The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the government to defend the new regulations ahead of a July 11 hearing.

Even with the stay in place, the rules had a chilling effect on livestock markets, already jittery over the proliferation of Hindu cow-protection vigilantes. Representatives of the leather and buffalo meat industries — which together account for around $10 billion in yearly exports — warned that the restrictions would lead to a catastrophic drop in supplies, as well as job losses and company closings.

There was also a political cost. The Bharatiya Janata Party, already popular in the so-called cow belt, has been eager to expand its support in the south and northeast, areas where meat is commonly eaten. B.J.P. leaders in two districts in Meghalaya State announced their resignation from the party, saying that eating meat was intrinsic to their culture.

Dr. Vardhan said the regulations had been widely misunderstood, and there had been no intention to discourage the eating or export of meat. “We do not want to either influence or change the food habits of anybody, neither do we want to affect the slaughtering business in this country,” he said, adding, “We will facilitate their growth, instead of hampering it.”