• By Nikhil Singh
  • Tue, 06 Jun 2023 06:38 PM (IST)
  • Source:JND
Add as a preferred

Workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Karnataka on Tuesday staged protests against the comments of state’s Minister K Venkatesh on cow slaughter. The Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government will “discuss” the cow slaughter ban in the upcoming cabinet meeting, the veteran Congress leader said on Monday.

In their protest against the Congress government in Bengaluru, BJP workers brought cows on the streets and party workers were seen feeding and caressing them in a video posted on Twitter by ANI. The trigger for their protest was Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences Minister K Venkatesh’s recent comment that if buffaloes can be slaughtered, why not cows?

Also Watch:

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah defended Venkatesh’s remarks on Monday and said that there is a lack of clarity in the cow slaughter ban brought by the previous BJP government and it will be discussed in the upcoming Cabinet meeting.

What Is Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, 2020?

The law was only drafted by the then BJP government in Karnataka in 2020. It was passed by the legislature and promulgated in 2021. There are three key features of the law (information sourced from PRS Legislative Research):

1. The law makes slaughter of cows, bulls, and bullocks of all ages, and buffaloes up to the age of 13 years legally punishable. It also makes their transportation to other states or within Karnataka for slaughter illegal.

2. This allows authorities to "inspect, and seize the cattle, and premises (including vehicles) used or intended to be used to violate the law”.

3. The confiscated cattle and premises may be held by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate irrespective of the status of prosecution of the accused. If convicted, the seized cattle or premises will stand forfeited to the government.

ALSO READ: BJP Protests Against Karnataka Govt's Plan To Scrap Cow Slaughter Ban Amid Row Over Congress Leaders' Remarks

What Is Congress’ Rationale For Reviewing Cow Slaughter Ban?

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has not said that the ban will be revoked in the state. He has said that it will be discussed in the upcoming cabinet meet.

“We will discuss it in the Cabinet. We have not decided anything yet,” he was quoted saying in an NDTV report. Even K Venkatesh had said that the Congress government will first discuss the law in a cabinet meeting. 

But he also said that farmers in the state are facing problems in managing aged cattle and disposing of deceased animals. The changes that the Congress government will introduce in the law will benefit the farmers in discarding the carcasses of their cattle, according to media reports.

BJP has responded sharply to this argument of farmers facing difficulty in dealing with the carcasses of their cattle. “With the Minister's statement, large-scale smuggling of cows and mass slaughtering factories in the state will rise. Legislation was introduced during our government to prevent illegal slaughterhouses. No new Act has been brought in Karnataka. We have enforced the existing law,” former Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai said in a tweet.

 

(With agency inputs)