New Delhi (Sputnik) — The political rise of the Hindu right wing in India with the election victory of the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) in 2014 has caused proliferation of pro-Hinduism policies and practices in the multi-faith secular state. Protection of cows, considered sacred by the Hindus, continues to be underpinned by vigilantism led by fringe groups that often hound humans in the name of protecting the cow.
The apex court of India on January 29 issued contempt notices to the government of three states for failing to abide by its earlier order calling for the prevention of human rights violation concomitant to cow vigilantism. The recipient of the contempt notice include the northern states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Haryana — all ruled by the BJP. The states will have to reply to the notice by April 3.
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Though consumption of cow meat is a taboo among the higher caste Hindus, the norm is not subscribed to by the country's sizeable Muslim community, and the minority Christians and Buddhists as well as the lower-caste Hindus.
However, killing cows is banned in many states of India. Some have recently toughened the ban making even possessing beef illegal.
The most infamous case of cow vigilantism that triggered countrywide shock and awe happened in September 2015 in Dadri village of Uttar Pradesh when the house of an elderly Muslim man Mohamad Akhlaque was raided by a mob who hacked him to death upon discovering meat in his kitchen.
In July 2016 four Dalit men were stripped and beaten for allegedly transporting cows for butchering in Gujarat. In 2017, another Muslim man Pehlu Khan was lynched by vigilantes while he was returning to his hometown of Alwar in Rajasthan after purchasing a cow.
WARNING: The footage can offend sensibilities
Tushar Gandhi, the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi has been at the forefront of a silent movement against the politicization of the cow agenda. In response to a petition filed by Gandhi, the country's apex court in September 2017 had asked 26 states to depute a nodal officer and enhance highway patrol to check violence in the name of cow protection.
However, vigilantism continues unabated in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan.
Yogi Adityanath, a Hindu cleric, who was appointed the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh in March 2017, has cracked down on slaughterhouses and meat shops, mostly run by Muslims. He said he was shutting down illegal establishments but news reports suggested the crackdown was led by the fringe group Hindu Yuva Vahini, founded by Adityanath in 2002.
The Haryana government has set up a helpline for citizens to report cow slaughter and smuggling and has even appointed police task forces to respond to the complaints.
The Rajasthan imposed additional taxes for "conservation and propagation of cow and its progeny" in April 2017. The state has had a dedicated department for ensuring the welfare of cows since 2013.