JOIN US To strengthen the bond of brotherhood and show respect for Hindu brethren, Muslim clerics have appealed to the community members not to slaughter cows on the occasion of Eid-ul-Adaha (Bakar Eid).
“It is not proper to slaughter the cows in India on Bakar Eid,” said Maulana Kalbe Saadique, a well- known Shia cleric and the vice president of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, an apex body of Muslims in the country.
“Muslims should avoid cow slaughter on Bakar Eid and respect the sentiments of fellow Hindu countrymen. This country belongs to all of us,” Saadique said.
‘Abide by fatwa’
The cleric pointed out that a fatwa (religious decree) had been issued at the time of independence directing that there would be no cow slaughter in India. “We must abide by that fatwa”, Maulana added.
Another well-known cleric Abdul Khalique Madrasi also said the Muslims should avoid cow slaughter in the states, where it has been banned.
“We are strictly against cow slaughter,” Madrasi, who is also the Naib Mohatamim (pro-vice chancellor) of the prestigious Islamic Seminary Darul Uloom in Deoband, said.
The cleric added that the Seminary had recently published a book in which the issues pertaining to qurbani (sacrifice) have been dealt with in detail.
Lack of awareness
He also said the educated class among the Muslims certainly follows the opinions of the Islamic organisations though there was a lack of awareness among those, who were not that well educated.
There have been incidents of communal violence over cow slaughter in the state. On many occasions, violence erupts, especially in the rural areas, whenever, the majority community finds that cows are being slaughtered.
The police also regularly seize trucks loaded with cows allegedly being taken to slaughter houses.