New Delhi: India’s prime minister has condemned a rise in mob attacks against cow traders, beef eaters and dairy farmers that have mainly targeted Muslims.
Narendra Modi yesterday said that killing people on the pretext of protecting cows is illegal and goes against the pacifist teachings of independence leader Mahatma Gandhi.
Killing people in the name of ‘gau-bhakti’ (cow worship) is not acceptable. This is not something Mahatma Gandhi would approve of. We are the land of non-violence. We are the land of Mahatma Gandhi. Why do we forget this,” Modi said at Sabarmati Ashram in Gujarat.
The PM said that killing a person does not qualify as cow protection.
“Violence never has, and never will solve any problem. Let us all work together. Let us create the India of Mahatma Gandhi’s dreams. Let us create an India our freedom fighters would be proud of. Mahatma Gandhi and great leaders such as Vinoba Bhave have shown us what real ‘gau raksha’ (cow protection) is. There is no place for violence in society,” Modi emphasised.
Cows are considered sacred by many members of Hindu majority, and the slaughter of cows and eating of beef is illegal or restricted in several states.
He further stated that no one will be allowed to take the law into their hands.
This is not for the first time Modi has admonished cow vigilantes. In August last year, he said people have opened shops in the name of cow protection.
“There are those who use the mask of cow protection to attack others. These so-called ‘gau-rakshaks’ who claimed to be protectors during the day often resorted to criminal activities at night. Such people have opened shops in the name of ‘gau-raksha.’ This will not be allowed,” he had said.
Welcoming the PM’s statement on Thursday, Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury said, “we are glad that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has finally spoken out. But what steps does his government plan to take to check such incidents?”
Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the recurrence of mob lynchings showed the “intent of Modi government” at the Centre.
“The Prime Minister should do something about it. If the government is competent enough, then it should punish the perpetrators. Instead it is protecting them by staying mute,” Surjewala stated.
Nationwide protests
Meanwhile, a series of protests were held across the country on Wednesday and Thursday against a wave of attacks on Muslims and others who have been accused of killing cows and eating beef by cow vigilantes.
Hundreds of people joined the protest called “Not In My Name”, held in Delhi on Wednesday, six days after 17-year-old Junaid Khan was killed by a mob aboard a train.
AP
People hold posters during one of the rallies organised nationwide by citizens, to protest attacks on minorities in India, and the silence of the government over the killings.
Khan was travelling home to his village in Haryana with his cousins after shopping in Delhi ahead of Eid. A group of about 20 men accused Khan of carrying beef in his bag and yelled religious slurs at them. Khan was beaten and later stabbed to death.
In Delhi, among the protesters were ordinary citizens and leaders from various political parties such as Congress, Janata Dal (United), Communist Party of India (CPI) and Aam Admi Party (AAP).
“We are outraged at systematic violence across the country in the name of cow protection. The government has done nothing to check it. We cannot allow killing of Muslims in the name of Hinduism or cow protection,” one of the protesters, painter Ajitabh Sinha, told reporters.
Earlier, one Pehlu Khan, 55, was beaten to death in April in Rajasthan for transporting cows for his dairy farm after a mob accused him of smuggling cows illegally.
On Tuesday, a man was beaten up and his house set on fire by a mob in a Jharkhand village about 200km from state capital Ranchi, after they allegedly found a headless carcass of a cow outside his house.
According to police, a 200-strong mob attacked Usman Ansari after some people reported to have seen a cow carcass outside his house in Betia Hatianand village of Girdih district.