Declare cow national animal, its protection a right: HC

The cow should be declared the national animal and cow protection should be considered the fundamental right of Hindus because we know that when country’s culture and its faith gets hurt, the country becomes weak, the Allahabad high court observed on Wednesday, denying bail to a man accused of cow slaughter.

Rejecting the bail application of Javed, who went by one name only, a single-judge bench of justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav said: “Fundamental Right is not only the prerogative of beef eaters; rather, those who worship the cow and are financially

PRAYAGRAJ:

dependent on cows, also have the right to lead a meaningful life. The right to life is above the right to kill and the right to eat beef can never be considered a fundamental right.”

The judge noted that the applicant, after committing theft of the cow, had killed it, beheaded it, and stored its meat.

“This is not the first offence of the applicant,” the court said, adding that if the applicant is released on bail, he will again commit the same offence, spoiling communal harmony.

The judge also asked the government to pass a legislation declaring “the cow as the national animal” and that enables action “against those who talk about harming the cows” and also those who claim to protect cows but only want to “earn money in the name of cow protection”.

This wasn’t about religion, justice Yadav stressed, pointing out that several Muslim rulers of India made a point of protecting cows. “Muslims have also considered the cow as an important part of India’s culture during their reign. For example, slaughter of cows was banned by five Muslim rulers. Babur, Humayun, and Akbar prohibited the sacrifice of cows in their religious festivals. The Nawab of Mysore, Hyder Ali, made cow slaughter a punishable offence”.

In India, the slaughter of cow is partially or fully banned by law in 20 states, with the earliest going back almost 70 years. Recent years, however, have seen a spurt in attacks by cow vigilante groups on people transporting cows, including, in several cases, those not doing so for slaughter.

Emphasising the usefulness of the cow, the judge further observed: “The cow is useful even when she is old and sick, and her dung and urine are very useful for agriculture, making of medicines”.

He added that no one has the right to kill “one who is worshiped as a mother.”

Justice Yadav was also critical of cow shelters where cows are not properly cared for, and owners who abandon cows that are no longer productive.

“The cow needs to be protected and taken care of... and the government will also have to consider their case seriously. Only when there is welfare of cows, will there be welfare of this country,” justice Yadav said.

THIS WASN’T ABOUT RELIGION, JUSTICE YADAV STRESSED, POINTING OUT THAT SEVERAL MUSLIM RULERS OF INDIA MADE A POINT OF PROTECTING COWS