Anti-cow slaughter law not required, says Brinda Karat

Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat said on Monday that the country does not need any national anti-cow slaughter law.

In an article published on the website of a national TV channel, she wrote that the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has picked up the verdict of Himachal Pradesh High Court over the issue and started demanding the ban.

The judgment has asked the central government to consider enacting a law at the national level for prohibiting slaughter of cow or calf, import or export of cow or calf, selling of beef or beef products. The HC has given three-months time to the Centre to implement its order.

It also gave a directive to the central government to provide funds for the upkeep of stray cattle.

“Not surprisingly, this has immediately been picked up by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad to demand such a national law. There is a deliberate attempt to whip up a feeling that cow slaughter is rampant because of weak laws,” Brinda said.

The CPM leader said that Article 48 of the  Constitution (Directive Principles) gives special protection to the cow not for religious reasons but on grounds of scientific agriculture.

“Of course this article itself was a compromise worked out with the proponents of a national ban on cow slaughter by Ambedkar in the Constituent Assembly, who was opposed to such a ban,” she said.

“India does not need a national anti-cow slaughter law. It does not require laws that determine dietary preferences of its citizens,” she said.