Cow vigilantes cry hoarse in state as Bakr Eid nears

KOLKATA: As Bakr Eid nears, the Goraksha committee and the Govansh Vikas Prakashtha of the Bharatiya Janta Party gear up for their “peak season“ of activism to “minimise“ cow slaughter.

In a major shift from their earlier plan of action of recruiting hundreds of volunteers to keep a vigil on illegal cow slaughter and smuggling, these groups this year have petitioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Ramnath Kovind and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee appealing to impose a ban on “mindless“ cow slaughter in Bengal during Bakr Eid.

In the memorandum sent to the high offices, the outfits explained why cows are at maximum risk in West Bengal. To support their appeal and claim, the cow protection cell has already begun a signature campaign demanding a ban on bovine slaughter in Bengal. In the letter, Cow Development and Protection Cell state president Subrata Gupta said that the state government should ensure that there was no inflow of cows in Bengal and that no bovine animal should be allowed to be taken to slaughter houses.Referring to the apex court's verdict on cow slaughter, Gupta appealed to the Centre to direct the state government to see that “mindless, illogical and pathetic“ ways of cow-slaughter are banned in the region.

“We have set a target of collecting at least 10 lakh signatures in support of the ban. Thousands of volunteers have joined hands to make the signature campaign a success. We will bring a blanket ban on cow slaughter in Bengal soon,“ said Gupta.

With Bengal being considered as the “destination“ state for the BJP now, the party's state unit has extended its support to these outfits. BJP state president Dilip Ghosh said that a ban on cow-slaughter should be imposed in the state.