#NotInMyName: Are cows more important than women?

Are cows more important than women in India? It may not be a question asked by many people, but unless you live under a rock and are oblivious to the #NotInMyName protests that even had Prime Minister Modi address the nation about the threat of cow vigilantism and lynchings, this question, asked by a 23-year-old Delhi-based photographer that had Indian women wearing cow masks may just interest you.

Sujatro Ghosh said that he was inspired to take up the project to protest and resist against the growth of violent cow vigilantism in India.

"I am perturbed by the fact that in my country, cows are considered more important than a woman, that it takes much longer for a woman who is raped or assaulted to get justice than for a cow which many Hindus consider a sacred animal," Ghosh was quoted saying to the BBC.


After purchasing cow masks from a party shop in New York earlier this month and persuading his subjects to wear them, Ghosh clicked his subjects, both indoors and out in the public.

"I photographed women from every part of society. I started the project from Delhi since the capital city is the hub of everything - politics, religion, even most debates start here....I took the first photo in front of the iconic India Gate, one of the most visited tourist places in India. Then I photographed a model in front of the presidential palace, another on a boat in the Hooghly river in Kolkata with the Howrah bridge as the backdrop."

But are cows really more important in India than women like Sujatro Ghosh claims? It seems he is correct, certainly in certain parts such as Haryana, considering the passage of the controversial Gauvansh Sanrakshan and Gausamvardhan Act, which allows for up to 10 years imprisonment in case of cow slaughter and also makes it a non-bailable offence. Take a look and compare the quantum of punishment for some of the other offences, including some crimes against women and decide for yourself.