Cow slaughter in public sparks Kerala furore, 16 booked
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A “beef festival” in Left-ruled Kerala took a nasty turn in Kannur on Saturday evening when some Youth Congress leaders slaughtered a cow in public and distributed the cooked meat.
Sixteen alleged offenders were booked under IPC Section 428 (mischief by killing or maiming animal of the value of ~10) and Section (ii) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. A person found guilty under IPC Section 428 could face jail up to two years with fine.
Condemning the incident, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi tweeted, “What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric & completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party.”
Youth groups of the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF and Congressheaded UDF opposition have organised festivals to protest the central government’s decision to ban the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter.
YOUTH GROUPS HAVE ORGANISED FESTIVALS TO PROTEST THE CENTRE’S DECISION TO BAN THE SALE AND PURCHASE OF CATTLE FOR SLAUGHTER
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A “beef festival” in Left-ruled Kerala took a nasty turn in Kannur on Saturday evening when some Youth Congress leaders slaughtered a cow in public and distributed the cooked meat.
Sixteen alleged offenders were booked under IPC Section 428 (mischief by killing or maiming animal of the value of ~10) and Section (ii) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. A person found guilty under IPC Section 428 could face jail up to two years with fine.
Condemning the incident, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi tweeted, “What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric & completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party.”
Youth groups of the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF and Congress-headed UDF opposition have organised festivals to protest the Centre’s decision to ban the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter.
The BJP, which is trying to gain a toehold in the state and won its first seat in the last year’s assembly election, criticised the slaughtering of the animal while the Congress asked its cadres to use restraint during protests.
BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan tweeted the video of the slaughter, saying it was the “peak of cruelty”.
Youth Congress activists defended their move, saying it was a natural form of protest. “The Centre is denying food to the people, it is the biggest cruelty,” Youth Congress leader Rejil Makutty said.
The CPI(M) criticised the incident. “It is a thoughtless act and it will only help Sangh Parivar outfits. It is sad that Youth Congress activists stooped so low for publicity,” MB Rajesh, party MP, said.
Though Kerala is one of the few states where cow slaughter is not banned, animal lovers said “such brazen acts” glorify cruelty towards animals and demanded action against Youth Congress activists.
The Centre’s move to ban cow slaughter, which will hurt millions of poor farmers and squeeze supplies to the country’s ~1 lakh-crore meat industry, is being seen as a move to push the BJP’s alleged Hindutva agenda, and has been criticised by several states.
As protests mounted in Kerala, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the Centre couldn’t draw up a menu and change the food habits of people.
“Today it is saying you can’t eat beef, tomorrow it can say no to fish also. We will not allow this to happen in our state,” the chief minister said, adding the decision would leave many people jobless. The state government might challenge the notification.
Beef accounts for 60% of the total meat consumed in Kerala.
Since most of the cattle come from the neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, Kerala meat traders fear the notification will embolden Hindu fringe outfits and hit supply leading to a shortage of meat in the state.