He was speaking at a seminar at the St Marks Cathedral on Saturday. “The Bill is higly discriminatory as it targeted food habits of the most vulnerable and the weaker sections and minorities,” he said.
Things could take a dangerous turn as the Bill empowered the police to barge inside any house on the slightest suspicion of possessing cattle. “With the power wielded by the police, it can prove disastrous as the onus of proving the innocence is on the accused,” he noted.
Echoing similar views, former MLA, Sriram Reddy said the more than 25 per cent population depended on the milk business to eak out a living. “Most of the cows that give milk last four to five years. With the government making it illegal to sell cows, the onus of maintenance will completely shift to the poor farmers and agriculturist. It would be a big burden on them”, he added.
Published 10 April 2010, 19:25 IST