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Cattle slaughter in India refers to the slaughter and consumption of
bovine Bovines (subfamily Bovinae) comprise a diverse group of 10 genera of medium to large-sized ungulates, including Bos, cattle, bison, African buffalo, Bubalus, water buffalos, and the four-horned and spiral-horned antelopes. The members of this gro ...
species in
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. A controversial phenomenon due to cattle's status as adored and respected beings to adherents of
Dharmic religions Indian religions, sometimes also termed Dharmic religions or Indic religions, are the religions that originated in the Indian subcontinent. These religions, which include Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism,Adams, C. J."Classification o ...
like
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...
,
Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
,
Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...
and
Sikhism Sikhism is an Indian religion and Indian philosophy, philosophy that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent around the end of the 15th century CE. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups, major religio ...
. Though it is an acceptable source of
meat Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted and farmed other animals for meat since prehistory. The Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of vertebrates, including chickens, sheep, ...
in
Abrahamic religions The term Abrahamic religions is used to group together monotheistic religions revering the Biblical figure Abraham, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The religions share doctrinal, historical, and geographic overlap that contrasts them wit ...
such as
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
,
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
, and
Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...
, most Indian citizens abstain from consuming beef due to cattle's high regard in Dharmic divinity. The association reflects the importance of cows in Hindu and Jain culture and spirituality, as cattle have been an integral part of rural livelihoods as an economic necessity across Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist societies, along with council-hoods in India. Cattle slaughter has also been opposed by various Indian religions because of the ethical principle of
Ahimsa (, IAST: , ) is the ancient Indian principle of nonviolence which applies to actions towards all living beings. It is a key virtue in Indian religions like Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism. (also spelled Ahinsa) is one of the cardinal vi ...
(non-violence) & the belief in the unity of all life. Legislation against cattle slaughter is in place throughout most
states and union territories of India India is a federalism, federal union comprising 28 federated state, states and 8 union territory, union territories, for a total of 36 subnational entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into 800 List of districts ...
. On 26 October 2005, the
Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judiciary of India, judicial authority and the supreme court, highest court of the Republic of India. It is the final Appellate court, court of appeal for all civil and criminal cases in India. It also ...
, in a landmark decision, upheld the
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
al validity of anti-cow slaughter laws enacted by various
state governments of India The state governments of India are the governments ruling over the 28 states and three union territories (there are eight union territories but only three union territories have legislative assemblies as well as governments) of India with th ...
. 20 out of 28 states in India had various laws regulating the act of slaughtering cow, prohibiting the slaughter or sale of beef.
Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...
,
Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...
,
Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...
,
Meghalaya Meghalaya (; "the abode of clouds") is a states and union territories of India, state in northeast India. Its capital is Shillong. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the Assam: the United Khasi Hills an ...
,
Mizoram Mizoram is a states and union territories of India, state in northeastern India, with Aizawl as its Capital city, capital and largest city. It shares 722-kilometres (449 miles) of international borders with Bangladesh to the west, and Myanmar t ...
,
Nagaland Nagaland () is a States and union territories of India, state in the northeast India, north-eastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south, and the Naga Sel ...
,
Tripura Tripura () is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a populat ...
,
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
, Dadra and Nagar Haveli & Daman and Diu and Puducherry have no restrictions on cow slaughter. The ban in Jammu & Kashmir and
Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a Kashmir#Kashmir dispute, dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India an ...
was lifted in 2019. As per existing meat export policy in India, the export of beef (meat of cow, oxen and calf) is currently prohibited. Bone in meat, carcass, and half carcass of buffalo are also prohibited and not permitted for export. Only the boneless meats of buffalo, goat, sheep and birds are permitted for export. Many Indians feel that the restriction on export to only boneless meat with a ban on meat with bones will add to the brand image of Indian meat. Animal carcasses are subjected to maturation for at least 24 hours before deboning. Subsequent heat processing during the bone removal operation is believed to be sufficient to kill viruses causing
foot and mouth disease Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) or hoof-and-mouth disease (HMD) is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that primarily affects even-toed ungulates, including domestic and wild bovids. The virus causes a high fever lasting two to six d ...
. The laws governing cattle slaughter in India vary greatly from state to state. The "Preservation, protection and improvement of stock and prevention of animal diseases, veterinary training and practice" is Entry 15 of the
State List The State List or List-II is a list of 61 items. Initially there were 66 items in the list in Schedule Seven to the Constitution of India. The legislative section is divided into three lists: the Union List, the State List and the Concurrent Lis ...
of the Seventh Schedule of the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
, meaning that State legislatures have exclusive powers to legislate the prevention of slaughter and preservation of cattle. Some states permit the slaughter of cattle with restrictions like a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate which may be issued depending on factors like age and sex of cattle, continued economic viability etc. Other states ban completely cattle slaughter, while there is no restriction in a few states., Quote: "... and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle." On 26 May 2017, the
Ministry of Environment An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment, ...
of the
Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...
led by
Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...
imposed a ban on the sale and purchase of cattle for slaughter at animal markets across India, under Prevention of Cruelty to Animals statutes, although
Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judiciary of India, judicial authority and the supreme court, highest court of the Republic of India. It is the final Appellate court, court of appeal for all civil and criminal cases in India. It also ...
suspended the ban on sale of cattle in its judgement in July 2017, giving relief to beef and leather industries. According to a 2016
United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...
review, India has rapidly grown to become the world's largest beef exporter, accounting for 20% of world's beef trade based on its large water buffalo meat processing industry. Surveys of cattle slaughter operations in India have reported hygiene and ethics concerns. According to
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
'
Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security. Its Latin motto, , translates ...
and
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
, India beef consumption per capita per year is the world's lowest amongst the countries it surveyed. India produced 3.643 million metric tons of
beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...
in 2012, of which 1.963 million metric tons was consumed domestically and 1.680 million metric tons was exported. According to a 2012 report, India ranks fifth in the world in
beef production The meat industry are the people and companies engaged in modern industrialized livestock agriculture for the production, packing, preservation and marketing of meat Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as fo ...
and seventh in domestic consumption. The Indian government requires mandatory microbiological and other testing of exported beef.Lisa Ahramjian and Vijay Intodia (August 2016)

Editor: Jonn Slette, GAIN Report IN6115, US Department of Agriculture


History


Indian religions

The majority of scholars explain the veneration for cattle among Hindus in economic terms, which includes the importance of dairy in the diet, use of cow dung as fuel and fertilizer, and the importance that cattle have historically played in agriculture.Animals and Society: An Introduction to Human-animal Studies
Margo DeMello, p.314, Columbia University Press, 2012
Ancient texts such as
Rig Veda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' (, , from wikt:ऋच्, ऋच्, "praise" and wikt:वेद, वेद, "knowledge") is an ancient Indian Miscellany, collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canoni ...
, s highlight the importance of the cattle. The scope, extent and status of cows throughout during ancient India is a subject of debate. According to D. N. Jha's 2009 work ''The Myth of the Holy Cow'', for example, cows and other cattle were neither inviolable nor revered in the ancient times as they were later. ''Grihya-sutra'' recommends that beef be eaten by the mourners, after a funeral ceremony, as a ritual rite of passage. According to Marvin Harris, the Vedic literature is contradictory, with some suggesting ritual slaughter and meat consumption, while others suggesting a taboo on meat eating. The protection of animal life was championed by
Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...
, on the grounds that violence against life forms is a source of suffering in the universe and a human being creates bad
karma Karma (, from , ; ) is an ancient Indian concept that refers to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called ...
by violence against any living being. The ''
Chandogya Upanishad The ''Chandogya Upanishad'' (Sanskrit: , IAST: ''Chāndogyopaniṣad'') is a Sanskrit text embedded in the Chandogya Brahmana of the Sama Veda of Hinduism.Patrick Olivelle (2014), ''The Early Upanishads'', Oxford University Press; , pp. 166-1 ...
'' mentions the ethical value of
Ahimsa (, IAST: , ) is the ancient Indian principle of nonviolence which applies to actions towards all living beings. It is a key virtue in Indian religions like Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism. (also spelled Ahinsa) is one of the cardinal vi ...
, or non-violence towards all beings. By mid 1st millennium BCE, all three major Indian religions – Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism – were championing non-violence as an ethical value, and something that affected one's rebirth. According to Harris, by about 200 CE, food and feasting on animal slaughter were widely considered as a form of violence against life forms, and became a religious and social taboo.Marvin Harris (1990)
India's sacred cow
, Anthropology: contemporary perspectives, 6th edition, Editors: Phillip Whitten & David Hunter, Scott Foresman, , pages 201–204
Ralph Fitch Ralph Fitch (1550 – 1611) was a gentleman, a merchant of London and one of the earliest British travellers and merchants to visit Mesopotamia, the Persian Gulf, Indian Ocean, South Asia, and Southeast Asia including the court of Mughal e ...
, a gentleman
merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...
of London and one of the earliest English travelers to India, wrote a letter home in 1580 stating, "They have a very strange order among them – they worship a cow and esteem much of the cow's dung to paint the walls of their houses. They eat no flesh but live by roots and rice and milk." The cow has been a symbol of wealth in India since
ancient times Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian language, ...
.


Hinduism

According to Nanditha Krishna the cow veneration in ancient India during the Vedic era, the religious texts written during this period called for non-violence towards all bipeds and quadrupeds, and often equated killing of a cow with the killing of a human being specifically a
Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
. Nanditha Krishna stated that the hymn 8.3.25 of the Hindu scripture ''Atharvaveda'' (≈1200–1500 BCE) condemns all killings of men, cattle, and horses, and prays to god
Agni Agni ( ) is the Deva (Hinduism), Hindu god of fire. As the Guardians of the directions#Aṣṭa-Dikpāla ("Guardians of Eight Directions"), guardian deity of the southeast direction, he is typically found in southeast corners of Hindu temples. ...
to punish those who kill. According to Harris, the literature relating to cow veneration became common in 1st millennium CE, and by about 1000 CE vegetarianism, along with a taboo against beef, became a well accepted mainstream Hindu tradition. This practice was inspired by the belief in Hinduism that a soul is present in all living beings, life in all its forms is interconnected, and non-violence towards all creatures is the highest ethical value. Vegetarianism is a part of the Hindu culture. God
Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...
, one of the incarnations (
Avatar Avatar (, ; ) is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means . It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearance" is sometimes u ...
) of
Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...
, is associated with cows, adding to its endearment. Study shows ancient Hindus ate meat-heavy food. Many ancient and medieval Hindu texts debate the rationale for a voluntary stop to cow slaughter and the pursuit of vegetarianism as a part of a general abstention from violence against others and all killing of animals. Some significant debates between pro-non-vegetarianism and pro-vegetarianism, with mention of cattle meat as food, is found in several books of the Hindu epic, the ''
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...
'', particularly its Book III, XII, XIII and XIV. It is also found in the ''
Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...
''. These two epics are not only literary classics, but they have also been popular religious classics. The
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...
debate presents one meat-producing hunter who defends his profession as dharmic. The hunter, in this ancient Sanskrit text, states that meat consumption should be okay because animal sacrifice was practiced in the Vedic age, that the flesh nourishes people, that man must eat to live and plants like animals are alive too, that the nature of life is such every life form eats the other, that no profession is totally non-violent because even agriculture destroys numerous living beings when the plough digs the land. The hunter's arguments are, states Alsdorf, followed by stanzas that present support for restricted meat-eating on specific occasions. The pro-vegetarianism sections of these Hindu texts counter these views. One section acknowledges that the Vedas do mention sacrifice, but not killing the animal. The proponents of vegetarianism state that Vedic teachings explicitly teach against killing, its verses can be interpreted in many ways, that the correct interpretation is of the sacrifice as the interiorized spiritual sacrifice, one where it is an "offering of truth (''
satya (Sanskrit: ; IAST: ) is a Sanskrit word that can be translated as "truth" or "essence.“ In Indian religions, it refers to a kind of virtue found across them. This virtue most commonly refers to being truthful in one's thoughts, speech and act ...
'') and self-restraint ('' damah'')", with the proper sacrifice being one "with reverence as the sacrificial meal and Veda study as the herbal juices". The sections that appeal for vegetarianism, including abstention from cow slaughter, state that life forms exist in different levels of development, some life forms have more developed sensory organs, that non-violence towards fellow man and animals who experience pain and suffering is an appropriate ethical value. It states that one's guiding principle should be conscientious ''atmaupamya'' (literally, "to-respect-others-as-oneself"). According to Ludwig Alsdorf, "Indian vegetarianism is unequivocally based on ''
ahimsa (, IAST: , ) is the ancient Indian principle of nonviolence which applies to actions towards all living beings. It is a key virtue in Indian religions like Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism. (also spelled Ahinsa) is one of the cardinal vi ...
'' (non-violence)" as evidenced by ancient '' smritis'' and other ancient texts of Hinduism. He adds that the endearment and respect for cattle in Hinduism is more than a commitment to vegetarianism, it has become integral to its theology. According to Juli Gittinger, it is often argued that cow sacredness and protection is a fundamental quality of Hinduism, but she considers this to be a false claim. This, states Gittinger, could be understood more as an example of "
Sanskritisation Sanskritisation (or Sanskritization) is a term in sociology which refers to the process by which castes or tribes placed lower in the caste hierarchy seek upward mobility by emulating the rituals and practices of the dominant castes or upper c ...
" or presentation of certain traditions followed by its upper castes as purer, informed form of Hinduism and possibly an influence of Jainism on Hinduism. The respect for cattle is widespread but not universal. Some Hindus (
Shaktism Shaktism () is a major Hindu denomination in which the God in Hinduism, deity or metaphysics, metaphysical reality is considered metaphorically to be a woman. Shaktism involves a galaxy of goddesses, all regarded as different aspects, mani ...
) practice animal sacrifice and eat meat on certain festivals. According to Christopher Fuller, animal sacrifices have been rare among the Hindus outside a few eastern states and Himalayan regions of the Indian subcontinent. To the majority of modern Indians, states Alsdorf, respect for cattle and disrespect for slaughter is a part of their ethos and there is "no ''ahimsa'' without renunciation of meat consumption".


Jainism

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...
is against violence to all living beings, including cattle. According to the Jaina sutras, humans must avoid all killing and slaughter because all living beings are fond of life, they suffer, they feel pain, they like to live, and long to live. All beings should help each other live and prosper, according to Jainism, not kill and slaughter each other. In the Jain tradition, neither monks nor laypersons should cause others or allow others to work in a slaughterhouse. Jains believe that vegetarian sources can provide adequate nutrition, without creating suffering for animals such as cattle. According to some Jain scholars, slaughtering cattle increases ecological burden from human food demands since the production of meat entails intensified grain demands, and reducing cattle slaughter by 50 percent would free up enough land and ecological resources to solve all malnutrition and hunger worldwide. The Jain community leaders, states Christopher Chapple, has actively campaigned to stop all forms of animal slaughter including cattle. Jains have led a historic campaign to ban the slaughter of cows and all other animals, particularly during their annual festival of
Paryushana Paryushana is an annual holy event in Jainism and is usually celebrated in August, September or October in the Hindi calendar month of Bhadrapad's Shukla Paksha. Jains increase their level of spiritual intensity often using fasting and praye ...
(also called Daslakshana by the Digambara). Historical records, for example, state that the Jain leaders lobbied Mughal emperors to ban slaughter of cattle and other animals, during this 8 to 12-day period. In some cases, such as during the 16th century rule of Akbar, they were granted their request and an edict was issued by Akbar. Jahangir revoked the ban upon coronation, reinstated it in 1610 when Jain community approached and appealed to him, then later reversed the 1610 ban with a new edict.


Buddhism

The first of the five ethical precepts ('' pañca­sīla'') enjoins Buddhists to "abstain from taking life", i.e. not to kill any sentient being. Later Buddhist commentators extend this to discourage participation in any slaughterhouse activities or commerce in meat products. According to S. Dhammika, the Buddha refrained from eating meat and fish only during his period of severe asceticism, but after his awakening he accepted whatever food was offered in his alms bowl, provided he did not know it had been specifically slaughtered for him. He instructed monastics to refuse any meat if they "had seen, heard, or suspected" that the animal was killed on their behalf, but gave no analogous restriction to lay followers. The only foods he is recorded as refusing were ''pāyāsa'' (milk-rice) and ''pūraḷāsa'' (cakes) used in certain Vedic offerings, which he rejected on doctrinal grounds rather than out of general aversion to those foods. When invited at a wealthy merchant ''Ugga''s home, he was served a dish flavoured with sal flowers, pork stewed with jujube fruit (''Sampannakolakam sūkramamsam'') and fried vegetable stalks, together with the best quality rice. Indeed, the Buddha's last meal in Pāvā where he stayed in macho orchard owned by ''Cunda'', a blacksmith, was ''Sūkaramaddava'' — which literally means "pig's softness" or "pig's belly" — a pork preparation of some kind, e.g. tender pork. However, it is debatable whether the dish was it literally meant; ''Dhammapala'' (5th cent. CE) gave the opinions of various ancient authorities on the dish ranging from pork, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, etc. indicating that by ten centuries after his death, the meaning of the word was lost and it has been 25 centuries to his death since. In the more recent Buddhist commentary, slaughtering cow has been a taboo, with some texts suggest taking care of a cow is a means of taking care of "all living beings", while consumption of meat isn't equivalent to killing a living being. Cattle is seen as a form of reborn human beings in the endless rebirth cycles in samsara, protecting animal life and being kind to cattle and other animals is good
karma Karma (, from , ; ) is an ancient Indian concept that refers to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called ...
. The Buddhist texts state that killing or eating meat is wrong, and they urge Buddhist laypersons to not operate slaughterhouses, nor trade in meat. Indian Buddhist texts encourage a plant-based diet. Saving animals from slaughter for meat, is believed in Buddhism to be a way to acquire merit for better rebirth. According to Richard Gombrich, there has been a gap between Buddhist precepts and practice. Vegetarianism is admired, states Gombrich, but often it is not practiced. Nevertheless, adds Gombrich, there is a general belief among Theravada Buddhists that eating beef is worse than other meat and the ownership of cattle slaughterhouses by Buddhists is relatively rare.


Sikhism

During the 1860s, the Namdhari
Sikhs Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Sikh'' ...
opposed cattle-slaughter. According to a ''Khalsa Bahadur (Lahore)'' article dated to 5 September 1903, the Sikhs consider cattle to be a useful animal but do not go to the lengths of the Hindus by considering it to be sacred. According to Arvind-Pal Singh Mandair, many Sikhs refrain from eating beef as cows, oxen, and buffalo are a central part of the livelihood of rural Sikhs, with many Sikhs coming from agricultural-backgrounds. Thus, Sikhs generally respect cattle and do not slaughter them for food.


Islam

With the arrival of Islamic rule as the
Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate or the Sultanate of Delhi was a Medieval India, late medieval empire primarily based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for more than three centuries.
in the 12th-century, Islamic dietary practices entered India. According to the verses of the
Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...
, such as 16:5–8 and 23:21–23, God created cattle to benefit man and recommends Muslims to eat cattle meat, but forbids pork. Cattle slaughter had been and continued to be a religiously approved practice among the Muslim rulers and the followers of Islam, particularly on festive occasions such as the
Eid al-Adha Eid al-Adha () is the second of the two main festivals in Islam alongside Eid al-Fitr. It falls on the 10th of Dhu al-Hijja, the twelfth and final month of the Islamic calendar. Celebrations and observances are generally carried forward to the ...
. The earliest texts on the invasion of the Indian subcontinent mention the cow slaughter taboo, and its use by Muslim army commanders as a political message by committing the taboo inside temples. For example, in the early 11th century narrative of
Al-Biruni Abu Rayhan Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Biruni (; ; 973after 1050), known as al-Biruni, was a Khwarazmian Iranian scholar and polymath during the Islamic Golden Age. He has been called variously "Father of Comparative Religion", "Father of modern ...
, the story of 8th-century
Muhammad bin Qasim Muḥammad ibn al-Qāsim al-Thaqafī (; –) was an Arabs, Arab military commander in service of the Umayyad Caliphate who led the Muslim conquest of Sindh (and Punjab, part of ancient Sindh), inaugurating the Umayyad campaigns in India. His m ...
conquest of
Multan Multan is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fifth-most populous city in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province of Pakistan. Located along the eastern bank of the Chenab River, it is the List of cities in Pakistan by populatio ...
is mentioned. In this Al-Biruni narrative, according to Manan Ahmed Asif – a historian of Islam in South and Southeast Asia, "Qasim first asserts the superiority of Islam over the polytheists by committing a taboo (killing a cow) and publicly soiling the idol (giving the cow meat as an offering)" before allowing the temple to continue as a place of worship. In the early 13th-century Persian text of
Chach Nama ''Chach Nama'' (; ; "Story of the Chach"), also known as the ''Fateh nama Sindh'' (; "Story of the Conquest of Sindh"), and as ''Tareekh al-Hind wa a's-Sind'' (; "History of Hind and Sind"), is a historical source for the history of Sindh. The ...
, the defending fort residents call the attacking Muslims in rage as "Chandalas and cow-eaters", but adds André Wink, the text is silent about "cow-worship". In the texts of court historians of the
Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate or the Sultanate of Delhi was a Medieval India, late medieval empire primarily based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for more than three centuries.
, and later the
Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...
, cow slaughter taboo in India is mentioned, as well as cow slaughter as a means of political message, desecration, as well as its prohibition by Sultans and Muslim Emperors as a means of accommodation of public sentiments in the Indian subcontinent. In 1756–57, in what was his fourth invasion of India, the founder of the
Durrani Empire The Durrani Empire, colloquially known as the Afghan Empire, or the Saddozai Kingdom, was an Afghanistan, Afghan empire founded by the Durrani tribe of Pashtuns under Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1747, which spanned parts of Central Asia, the Iranian ...
, Ahmad Shāh Durrānī sacked Delhi and plundered
Agra Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...
,
Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the states and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located south-east of Delhi; and about from the town of Vrindavan. In ancient ti ...
, and
Vrindavan Vrindavan (; ), also spelt Vrindaban and Brindaban, is a historical city in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located in the Braj, Braj Bhoomi region and holds religious importance for Hindus who believe that Krishna, one of ...
. On his way back to Afghanistan, he attacked the
Golden Temple The Golden Temple is a gurdwara located in Amritsar, Punjab, India. It is the pre-eminent spiritual site of Sikhism. It is one of the Holy place, holiest sites in Sikhism, alongside the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Kartarpur, Pakistan, ...
in
Amritsar Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...
and filled its sacred pool with the blood of slaughtered cows. While most Muslims consider cattle to be a source of religiously acceptable meat, some Muslim
Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
sects of India practiced vegetarianism,


Christianity

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
is one of India's largest religions after Hinduism and Islam, with approximately 28 million followers, constituting 2.3 percent of India's population (2011 census). According to legend, the Christian faith was introduced to India by
Thomas the Apostle Thomas the Apostle (; , meaning 'the Twin'), also known as Didymus ( 'twin'), was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Thomas is commonly known as "doubting Thomas" because he initially doubted the resurrection of ...
, who supposedly reached the Malabar Coast (
Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...
) in 52 AD. Later Christianity also arrived on the Indian sea coast with Christian travelers and merchants. Christians are a significant minority and a major religious group in three states of India – Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Nagaland, and a plurality of Christians exists in Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh. Other states with significant Christian populations include Coastal Andhra,
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
, Kerala, Kanara, the southern shore and northeast India. Christians in India, especially the
Saint Thomas Christians The Saint Thomas Christians, also called Syrian Christians of India, ''Marthoma Suriyani Nasrani'', ''Malankara Nasrani'', or ''Nasrani Mappila'', are an Ethnoreligious group, ethno-religious community of Indian Christians in the state of Ker ...
of
Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...
, follow
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
practices to an extent. Moreover, a significant number of Indians profess personal Christian faith outside the domain of traditional and institutionalized Christianity and do not associate with any Church or its conventional code of belief. In Christianity, no dietary restrictions apply to any kind of meats, which have been eaten by Christians in across of India for centuries.


Mughal Empire

Cattle slaughter, in accordance with the Islamic custom, was practiced in the Mughal Empire under its
Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...
rulers. Despite the legality of bovine slaughter, Muhammad Mahbubur Rahman stated that, "no one dared publicly to slaughter cows, particularly in Hindu-dominated areas as people could instantly punish the culprit". The
Mughal emperor The emperors of the Mughal Empire, who were all members of the Timurid dynasty (House of Babur), ruled the empire from its inception on 21 April 1526 to its dissolution on 21 September 1857. They were supreme monarchs of the Mughal Empire in ...
Humayun Nasir al-Din Muhammad (6 March 1508 – 27 January 1556), commonly known by his regnal name Humayun (), was the second Mughal emperor, who ruled over territory in what is now Eastern Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Northern India, and Pakistan from ...
opposed cow slaughter and refused to eat beef in an incident as cited by Jouher, after the killing of cows in a Hindu territory by his soldiers led to clashes, in the Tezkereh-al-Vakiat. Though historians doubt translation capabilities of Tezkereh-al-Vakiat by a British officer, Major Charles Stewart, there is enough hint that the early Mughal emperors were averse to cow slaughter for beef. During Akbar's reign, there was a strict ban on cow slaughter. This was followed by his son Jehangir and then Shah Jahan as well. It is well known that emperor Aurangzeb followed a hard line against Hindus. In 1645, soon after being appointed Governor of Gujarat by
Shah Jahan Shah Jahan I, (Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram; 5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), also called Shah Jahan the Magnificent, was the Emperor of Hindustan from 1628 until his deposition in 1658. As the fifth Mughal emperor, his reign marked the ...
,
Aurangzeb Alamgir I (Muhi al-Din Muhammad; 3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, also called Aurangzeb the Conqueror, was the sixth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707, becomi ...
desecrated the Chintamani Parshvanath
Jain temple A Jain temple, Derasar (Gujarati: દેરાસર) or Basadi (Kannada: ಬಸದಿ) is the place of worship for Jains, the followers of Jainism. Jain architecture is essentially restricted to temples and monasteries, and Jain buildings ge ...
near Sarashpur, Gujarat by killing a cow inside the Jain temple and lopping off the noses of the statues and converting it into a mosque calling it the "Might of Islam". In present-day
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
, a Hindu delegation to the 9th Sikh guru Guru Tegh Bahadur requested him to ban cow slaughter and told him "Cows are everywhere being slaughtered. If any cow or buffalo belonging to a Hindu is mortally ill, the Qazi comes and kills it on the spot. Muslims then flay it, cut it in pieces and carry it away. This causes us much distress. If we fail to inform the Qazi when a beast is dying, he punishes us, saying, 'Why did you not tell me? Now its spirit has gone to hell, whereas had it been killed in the approved Muslim manner, its spirit would have gone to paradise.'" Experts, however, doubt that Aurangzeb would have lifted the ban on cow slaughter enforced by his predecessors. Even during later Mughal period, there are documented references about the ban. During Emperor Farrukhsiyar's rule, for instance, there is documentary evidence of a royal trial over accusations of cow slaughter. There are references though that the ban would be relaxed during Bakr Id.


Maratha Empire

According to Ian Copland and other scholars, the
Maratha Empire The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern India, early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent List of Maratha dynasties and states, Ma ...
, which led a Hindu rebellion against the Muslim Mughal Empire and created a Hindu state in the 17th and 18th centuries, respected mosques, mausoleums and Sufi ''pirs''. However, the Maratha polity sharply enforced the Hindu sentiments for cow protection. This may be linked to the
Bhakti movement The Bhakti movement was a significant religious movement in medieval Hinduism that sought to bring religious reforms to all strata of society by adopting the method of Bhakti, devotion to achieve salvation. Originating in Tamilakam during 6t ...
that developed before the rise of the Maratha Empire, states Copland, where legends and a theology based on the compassion and love stories of Hindu god
Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...
, himself a cowherd, became integral to regional religiosity. The Maratha confederacy adopted the same approach with Portuguese Christians in the Western Ghats and the peninsular coastal regions. Marathas were , state Copland and others, they respected Christian priests, allowed the building of churches and gave state land to Christian causes. However, cattle protection expected by the Hindu majority was the state norm, which Portuguese Christians were required to respect.


Sikh Empire

Cow slaughter was banned by Maharajah Ranjit Singh, the founder of the
Sikh Empire The Sikh Empire was a regional power based in the Punjab, Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. It existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahore, to 1849, when it was defeated and conquered by the East India Company, Br ...
in
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
. This was not due to the beliefs of Sikhs. Many butcher houses were banned and restrictions were put on the slaughter of cow and sale of beef in the Sikh Empire, as following the traditions, cow was as sacred to the Hindus. During the Sikh reign, cow slaughter was a capital offence, for which perpetrators were even executed.


British rule

With the advent of
British rule in India The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...
, eating beef along with drinking whiskey as it was part of their
food culture The sociology of food is the study of food and how it relates to the history, progression, and future development of society. Studies includes the production and consumption of food as well as its medical, spiritual and ethical applications. ...
, in English-language colleges in
Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...
, became a method of fitting in into the British culture. Some Hindus, in the 1830s, consumed beef to show how they "derided irrational Hindu customs", according to Barbara Metcalf and Thomas Metcalf. The reverence for the cow played a role in the
Indian Rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against Company rule in India, the rule of the East India Company, British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the The Crown, British ...
against the
British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
. Hindu and Muslim
sepoy ''Sepoy'' () is a term related to ''sipahi'', denoting professional Indian infantrymen, traditionally armed with a musket, in the armies of the Mughal Empire and the Maratha. In the 18th century, the French East India Company and its Euro ...
s in the army of the East India Company came to believe that their
paper cartridge A paper cartridge is one of various types of small arms ammunition used before the advent of the cartridge (firearms), metallic cartridge. These cartridges consisted of a paper cylinder or cone containing the bullet, gunpowder, and in some case ...
s, which held a measured amount of
gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium ni ...
, were greased with cow and pig fat as it was the best and easily accessible method available at that time for greasing weapons since cattle and pigs had a good amount of fat in them. Historians argue that the symbol of the cow was used as a means of mobilizing Hindus. In 1870, the Namdhari Sikhs started the Kuka Revolution, revolting against the British, and seeking to protect the cows from slaughter. A few years later, Swami Dayananda Saraswati called for the stoppage of cow slaughter by the British and suggested the formation of Go-samvardhani Sabhas. In the 1870s, cow protection movements spread rapidly in
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
,
North-West Frontier Province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ) was a province of British India from 1901 to 1947, of the Dominion of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955, and of the Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Pakistan from 1970 to 2010. It was established on 9 November ...
,
Oudh State The Kingdom of Awadh (, , also Oudh State, Kingdom of Oudh, Awadh Subah, or Awadh State) was a Mughal subah, then an independent kingdom, and lastly a British protectorate in the Awadh region of North India until its annexation by the B ...
(now
Awadh Awadh (), known in British Raj historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a historical region in northern India and southern Nepal, now constituting the North-central portion of Uttar Pradesh. It is roughly synonymous with the ancient Kosala Regio ...
) and
Rohilkhand Rohilkhand (today Bareilly, Moradabad, Badaun and Rampur; ) is a region in the northwestern part of Uttar Pradesh, India, that is centered on the Bareilly and Moradabad divisions. It is part of the upper Ganges Plain, and is named after the ...
. The
Arya Samaj Arya Samaj () is a monotheistic Indian Hindu reform movement that promotes values and practices based on the belief in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda Saraswati founded the samaj in the 1870s. Arya Samaj was the first Hindu ...
had a tremendous role in skillfully converting this sentiment into a national movement. The first ''Gaurakshini sabha'' (cow protection society) was established in the Punjab in 1882. The movement spread rapidly all over
North India North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...
and to Bengal,
Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...
,
Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
presidencies and
Central Provinces The Central Provinces was a province of British India. It comprised British conquests from the Mughals and Marathas in central India, and covered parts of present-day Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra states. Nagpur was the primary ...
. The organization rescued wandering cows and reclaimed them to groom them in places called '' gaushalas'' (cow refuges). Charitable networks developed all through North India to collect rice from individuals, pool the contributions, and re-sell them to fund the ''gaushalas''. Signatures, up to 350,000 in some places, were collected to demand a ban on cow sacrifice.''Vishnu's crowded temple, India since the great rebellion'', pp. 67–69, Maria Misra, 2008, Yale University Press, . Between 1880 and 1893, hundreds of ''gaushalas'' were opened. Cow protection sentiment reached its peak in 1893. Large public meetings were held in
Nagpur Nagpur (; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Nāgapura'') is the second capital and third-largest city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is called the heart of India because of its central geographical location. It is the largest and most populated city i ...
,
Haridwar Haridwar (; ; formerly Mayapuri) is a city and municipal corporation in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India. With a population of 228,832 in 2011, it is the second-largest city in the state and the largest in the district. The city is s ...
, and
Benares Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges, Ganges river in North India, northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hinduism, Hindu world.* * * * The city ...
to denounce beef-eaters.
Melodramas A melodrama is a dramatic work in which plot, typically sensationalized for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodrama is "an exaggerated version of drama". Melodramas typically concentrate on dial ...
were conducted to display the plight of cows, and pamphlets were distributed, to create awareness among those who sacrificed and ate them. Riots broke out between Hindus and Muslims in Mau in the
Azamgarh Azamgarh is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the headquarters of Azamgarh division, which consists of Ballia, Mau and Azamgarh districts. Azamgarh is situated on the bank of Tamsa River (Tons). It is located east of the ...
district; it took 3 days for the government to regain control. However, Muslims had interpreted this as a promise of protection for those who wanted to perform
sacrifices Sacrifice is an act or offering made to a deity. A sacrifice can serve as propitiation, or a sacrifice can be an offering of praise and thanksgiving. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Greeks ...
. The series of violent incidents also resulted in a riot in Bombay involving the working classes, and unrest occurred in places as far away as
Rangoon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...
,
Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...
. An estimated thirty-one to forty-five communal riots broke out over six months and a total of 107 people were killed.
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
mentioned the cow protection movement in a letter, dated 8 December 1893, to then
Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...
Lansdowne, writing, "The Queen greatly admired the Viceroy's speech on the Cow-killing agitation. While she quite agrees in the necessity of perfect fairness, she thinks the Muhammadans do require more protection than Hindus, and they are decidedly by far the more loyal. Though the Muhammadan's cow-killing is made the pretext for the agitation, it is, in fact, directed against us, who kill far more cows for our army, &c., than the Muhammadans." Cow slaughter was opposed by some prominent leaders of the
independence movement Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of a ...
such as
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...
,
Bal Gangadhar Tilak Bal Gangadhar Tilak (; born Keshav Gangadhar Tilak (pronunciation: eʃəʋ ɡəŋɡaːd̪ʱəɾ ʈiɭək; 23 July 1856 – 1 August 1920), endeared as Lokmanya (IAST: ''Lokamānya''), was an Indian nationalist, teacher, and an independence ...
,
Lala Lajpat Rai Lala Lajpat Rai (28 January 1865 — 17 November 1928) was an Indian revolutionary, politician, and author, popularly known as ''Punjab Kesari (Lion of Punjab).'' He was one of the three members of the Lal Bal Pal trio. He died of severe tra ...
,
Madan Mohan Malviya Madan Mohan Malaviya (25 December 1861 — 12 November 1946; ) was an Indian scholar, educational reformer and activist notable for his role in the Indian independence movement. He was president of the Indian National Congress three times and ...
,
Rajendra Prasad Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, journalist and scholar who served as the first president of India from 1950 to 1962. He joined the Indian National Congress during the Indian independen ...
and
Purushottam Das Tandon Purushottam Das Tandon (; 1 August 1882 – 1 July 1962) was a freedom fighter from Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. He is widely remembered for his opposition to the partition of India, as well as efforts in achieving the ''Official Languag ...
. They supported a ban on cattle slaughter once India gained its independence from the colonial British. Gandhi supported cow protection and opposed cow slaughter, explaining the reverence for cow in March 1945. Gandhi supported the leather industry, but stated that slaughter is unnecessary because the skin can be sourced from cattle after its natural death. Gandhi said, "I worship it owand I shall defend its worship against the whole world," and that, "the cow is a poem of pity. One reads pity in the gentle animal. She is the mother to millions of Indian mankind. Protection of the cow means protection of the whole dumb creation of God." Gandhi considered cow protection as integral to Hindu beliefs, and called "cow protection to me is one of the most wonderful phenomena in human evolution" and "cow protection is the gift of Hinduism to the world, that it is not Tilak or
mantra A mantra ( ; Pali: ''mantra'') or mantram (Devanagari: मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words (most often in an Indo-Iranian language like Sanskrit or Avestan) belie ...
or
caste A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...
rules that judge Hindus, but their ability to protect the cow". According to Gandhi, cow protection means "protection of lives that are helpless and weak in the world". "I would not kill a human being for protection a cow", added Gandhi, and "I will not kill a cow for saving a human life, be it ever so precious". On 25 July 1947, in a prayer meeting, Gandhi opposed laws that were derived from religion. He said, "In India no law can be made to ban cow-slaughter. I do not doubt that Hindus are forbidden the slaughter of cows. I have been long pledged to serve the cow but how can my religion also be the religion of the rest of the Indians? It will mean coercion against those Indians who are not Hindus." According to Gandhi, Hindus should not demand cow slaughter laws based on their religious texts or sentiments, in the same way that Muslims should not demand laws based on
Sharia Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on Islamic holy books, scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran, Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' ...
t (Quran, Hadith) in India or Pakistan. In 1940, one of the Special Committees of the Indian National Congress stated that slaughter of cow and its progeny must be totally prohibited. However, another Committee of the Congress opposed cow slaughter prohibition stating that the skin and leather of cow and its progeny, which is fresh by slaughter should be sold and exported to earn foreign exchange. In 1944, the British placed restrictions on cattle slaughter in India, on the grounds that the shortage of cattle was causing anxiety to the Government. The shortage itself was attributed to the increased demand for cattle for cultivation, transport, milk and other purposes. It was decided that, in respect of slaughter by the army authorities, working cattle, as well as, cattle fit for bearing offspring, should not be slaughtered. Accordingly, the slaughter of all cattle below 3 years of age, male cattle between 3 and 10 years, female cattle between 3 and 10 years of age, which are capable of producing milk, as well as all cows which are pregnant or in milk, was prohibited. During the British Raj, there were several cases of communal riots caused by the slaughter of cows. A historical survey of some major communal riots, between 1717 and 1977, revealed that out of 167 incidents of rioting between Hindus and Muslims, that although in some cases the reasons for provocation of the riots was not given, 22 cases were attributable directly to cow slaughter.


Post-Independence

The Central Government, in a letter dated 20 December 1950, directed the State Governments not to introduce total prohibition on slaughter, stating, "Hides from slaughtered cattle are much superior to hides from the fallen cattle and fetch a higher price. In the absence of slaughter the best type of hide, which fetches good price in the export market will no longer be available. A total ban on slaughter is thus detrimental to the export trade and work against the interest of the Tanning industry in the country." In 1955, a senior Congress member of parliament Seth Govind Das drafted a bill for India's parliament for a nationwide ban on cow slaughter, stating that a "large majority of the party" was in favour. India's first Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat, and statesman who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20th century. Nehru was a pr ...
opposed this national ban on cow slaughter, and threatened to resign if the elected representatives passed the bill in India's parliament. The bill failed by a vote of 95 to 12. Nehru declared that it was individual states to decide their laws on cow slaughter, states Donald Smith, and criticized the ban on cow slaughter as "a wrong step"., Quote: "Although Nehru had declared that this ow slaughter lawwas a matter for the states to decide for themselves, he did not hesitate to criticize the U.P. decision as 'a wrong step'. (...) The U.P. bill was passed, and similar legislation imposing a total ban on cow slaughter has been enacted in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. All of these governments, of course, have been controlled by the Congress party." However, Nehru's opposition was largely irrelevant, states Steven Wilkinson, because under India's Constitution and federal structure laws such as those on cattle slaughter has been an exclusive State subject rather than being a Central subject. State legislatures such as those of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh enacted their own laws in the 1950s. In 1958, a lawsuit was instigated in the Supreme Court of India regarding the constitutionality of the slaughter ban laws in the state, where Qureshi petitioned that the laws infringed on Muslim rights to freely practice their religion such as sacrificing cows on Bakr-Id day. The Court determined that neither the Quran nor the ''Hidaya'' mandates cow slaughter, and the Islamic texts allow a goat or camel be sacrificed instead. Therefore, according to the Court, a total ban on cow slaughter did not infringe on the religious freedom of Muslims under Articles 25 or 48 of its Constitution. In 1966, Indian independence activist
Jayaprakash Narayan Jayaprakash Narayan Srivastava (; 11 October 1902 – 8 October 1979), also known as JP and ''Lok Nayak'' (Hindi for "People's leader"), was an Indian politician, theorist and Indian independence activist, independence activist. He is mai ...
wrote a letter to then Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and stateswoman who served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India from 1966 to 1977 and again from 1980 un ...
calling for a ban on cow slaughter. Narayan wrote, "For myself, I cannot understand why, in a Hindu majority country like India, where rightly or wrongly, there is such a strong feeling about cow-slaughter, there cannot be a legal ban". In the same year, the Hindu organisations started an agitation demanding a ban on the slaughter of cows. But Indira Gandhi did not accede to the demand. In July 1995, the Government of India stated before the Supreme Court, 'It is obvious that the Central Government as a whole is encouraging the scientific and sustainable development of livestock resources and their efficient utilization, which, inter alia, includes the production of quality meat for export as well as for the domestic market. This is being done with a view to increasing national wealth as well as providing better returns to farmers.' In recent decades, the Government has started releasing grants and loans for the establishment of modern slaughterhouses.


Contemporary issues


Hygiene

Poor hygiene and prevalence of meat-borne disease has been reported in studies of Indian cattle slaughter-houses. For example, in a 1976–1978 survey of 1,100 slaughtered cattle in Kerala slaughter-houses, Prabhakaran and other scholars reported, "468 cases of
echinococcosis Echinococcosis is a parasitic disease caused by tapeworms of the ''Echinococcus'' type. The two main types of the disease are ''cystic echinococcosis'' and ''alveolar echinococcosis''. Less common forms include ''polycystic echinococcosis'' an ...
and 19 cases of cysticercosis", the former affecting 365 livers and 340 lungs. The cattle liver was affected by disease in 79% of cattle and the lung in 73%. A 2001 study by Sumanth and other scholars on cattle slaughtered in Karnataka reported more than 60% of the carcasses were infected with
schistosoma ''Schistosoma'' is a genus of trematodes, commonly known as blood flukes. They are Parasitism, parasitic flatworms responsible for a highly significant group of infections in humans termed ''schistosomiasis'', which is considered by the World H ...
eggs and worms.S. Sumanth, PE D'Souza and MS Jagannath (2004), A study of nasal and visceral schistosomosis in cattle slaughtered at an abattoir in Bangalore, South India, Rev. Sci. Tech. Off. Int. Epiz., 23 (3), pp. 937–942 A 2007 report by Ravindran indicated over 50% of cattle slaughtered in Wayanad were infected. However the population size was very limited and usually restricted to a single slaughter-house, skewing the results.


Illegal slaughterhouses and cattle theft

According to media reports, India has numerous illegal slaughterhouses. For example, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, the officials in 2013 reported over 3,000 illegal slaughterhouses. Cattle are traditionally left to freely roam streets and graze in India. These are easy prey to thieves, state Rosanna Masiola and Renato Tomei. According to ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', the organized mafia gangs pick up the cattle they can find and sell them to these illegal slaughterhouses. These crimes are locally called "cattle rustling" or "cattle lifting".For New Breed of Rustlers, Nothing Is Sacred
Gardiner Harris (26 May 2013), The New York Times
In many cases, the cows belong to poor dairy farmers who lack the facility or infrastructure to feed and maintain the cows, and they don't traditionally keep them penned. According to Masiola and Tomei, the increasing meat consumption has led to cows becoming a target for theft. The theft of cattle for slaughter and beef production is economically attractive to the mafias in India. In 2013, states Gardiner Harris, a truck can fit 10 cows, each fetching about 5,000 rupees (about US$94 in 2013), or over US$900 per cattle stealing night operation. In a country where some 800 million people live on less than US$2 per day, such theft-based mafia operations are financially attractive. According to Andrew Buncombe, when smuggled across its border, the price per cattle is nearly threefold higher and the crime is financially more attractive. Many states have reported rising thefts of cattle and associated violence, according to ''
The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnath Goenka. In 1999, eight y ...
''. According to T.N. Madan, Muslim groups have been accused of stealing cattle as a part of their larger violence against non-Muslims. Cattle theft, states David Gilmartin and other scholars, was a common crime in
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
and has been a trigger for riots. According to the Bangladeshi newspaper ''The Daily Star'', some of cattle theft operations move the cattle stolen in India across the border into
Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
, ahead of festivals such as Eid-ul-Azha when the demand for meat increases. The criminals dye the white or red cows into black, to make identifying the stolen cow difficult. The Border Guard Bangladesh in 2016 reported of confiscating stolen cattle, where some of cattle's original skin color had been "tampered with". Hundreds of thousands of cows, states the British newspaper ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', are illegally smuggled from India into Bangladesh every year to be slaughtered. Gangs from both sides of the border are involved in this illegal smuggling involving an estimated 1.5 million (15 lakhs) cattle a year, and cattle theft is a source of the supply, states Andrew Buncombe. According to Zahoor Rather, trade in stolen cattle is one of the important crime-related border issues between India and Bangladesh.


Castes and religions

Hindu views on cattle slaughter and beef eating is caste-based, while other scholars disagree. Dalit Hindus who eat beef state the former, while those who don't state that the position of
Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
on cattle slaughter is ambiguous. Deryck Lodrick states, for example, vegetarianism is an upper caste phenomenon. In contrast, cow-cherishing, Krishna-worshipping rustic piety, say Susan Bayly and others, has been popular among agriculture-driven, cattle husbandry, farm laboring and merchant castes. These have typically been considered the low-castes in Hinduism. According to Bayly, reverence for the cow is widely shared in India across castes. The traditional belief has also associated death or the dead with being unclean, polluting or defiling, such as those who handle corpse, carrion and animal remains. However, the tradition differentiates between natural or accidental death, and intentional slaughter. According to Frederick J. Simoons, many members of low castes and tribal groups in India reject "cow slaughter and beef eating, some of them quite strongly", while others support beef eating and cattle slaughter. According to Simoons and Lodrick, the reverence for cattle among Hindus, and Indians in general, is more comprehensively understood by considering both the religious dimensions and the daily lives in rural India. The veneration of cow across various Hindu castes, states Lodrick, emerged with the "fifteenth century revival of Vaishnavism", when god
Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...
along with his cows became a popular object of
bhakti ''Bhakti'' (; Pali: ''bhatti'') is a term common in Indian religions which means attachment, fondness for, devotion to, trust, homage, worship, piety, faith, or love.See Monier-Williams, ''Sanskrit Dictionary'', 1899. In Indian religions, it ...
(devotional worship). In contrast, other scholars such as
J. A. B. van Buitenen Johannes Adrianus Bernardus van Buitenen (21 May 1928 – 21 September 1979) was a Dutch Indologist at the University of Chicago where he was the George V. Bobrinskoy Professor of Sanskrit in the Department of South Asian Languages and Civilizat ...
and Daniel Sheridan state that the theology and the most popular texts related to Krishna, such as the ''
Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; ), often referred to as the Gita (), is a Hindu texts, Hindu scripture, dated to the second or first century BCE, which forms part of the Hindu epic, epic poem Mahabharata. The Gita is a synthesis of various strands of Ind ...
'' was composed by about 2nd century BCE, and the ''
Bhagavata Purana The ''Bhagavata Purana'' (; ), also known as the ''Srimad Bhagavatam (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam)'', ''Srimad Bhagavata Mahapurana'' () or simply ''Bhagavata (Bhāgavata)'', is one of Hinduism's eighteen major Puranas (''Mahapuranas'') and one ...
'' was composed between 500 and 1000 CE. According to People's Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR), some Dalits work in leather which includes cow-skin and they rely on it for their livelihood. The position of Dalits to cow-protection is highly ambivalent, states PUDR, given their Hindu identity and the "endemic contradiction – between the 'Hindu' ethos of protecting the cow and a trade dependent fundamentally on the skin of cows". The selling of old cattle for skin, according to them, is supported by members of both "dominant and subordinate castes" for the leather-related economy. Dominant groups, officials and even some Dalits state that "Dalits are cow-protectors". The inclusion of Dalits in cow-protection ideology, according to PUDR, is accompanied by "avowal of loyalty to cow-protection" exposing the fragility of the cow-protection ideology across castes. Some Dalit student associations in the
Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
region state that beef preparations, such as ''beef biryani'', is the traditional food of low-castes. Historical evidence does not support this claim, state Claude Levy-Straus and Brigitte Sebastia. Beef as the traditional food of impoverished Dalits is a reconstruction of history and Indian beef dishes are a Mughal era innovation and more recently invented tradition. It is the nineteenth century politics that has associated beef and cattle slaughter with Muslim and Dalit identity, states Sebastia.


Economic imperative

According to anthropologist
Marvin Harris Marvin Harris (August 18, 1927 – October 25, 2001) was an American anthropologist. He was born in Brooklyn, New York City. A prolific writer, he was highly influential in the development of cultural materialism and environmental determinis ...
, the importance of cattle to Hindus and other religious groups is beyond religion, because the cattle has been and remains an important pillar of rural economy. In the traditional economy, states Harris, a team of oxen is "Indian peasant's tractor, thresher and family car combined", and the cow is the factory that produces those oxen. The cattle produce nutritious milk, their dung when dried serves as a major cooking fuel, and for the poor the cattle is an essential partner in many stages of agriculture. When cattle fall sick, the family worries over them like Westerners do over their pets or family members. A natural loss of a cattle from untimely death can cripple a poor family, and thus slaughtering a creature so useful and essential is unthinkable. According to Harris, India's unpredictable monsoons and famines over its history meant even greater importance of cattle, because Indian breeds of cattle can survive with little food and water for extended periods of time. According to Britha Mikkelsen and other scholars, cow dung produced by young and old cattle is the traditional cooking fuel as dung-cakes and fertilizer in India. The recycling substitutes over 25 million tons of fossil fuels or 60 million tons of wood every year, providing the majority of cooking fuel needs in rural India. In addition to being essential fuel for rural family, cattle manure is a significant source of fertilizer in Indian agriculture. The Indian religions adapted to the rural economic constraints, states Harris. Preserving cattle by opposing slaughter has been and remains an economic necessity and an insurance for the impoverished.
Marvin Harris Marvin Harris (August 18, 1927 – October 25, 2001) was an American anthropologist. He was born in Brooklyn, New York City. A prolific writer, he was highly influential in the development of cultural materialism and environmental determinis ...
(1978), India's sacred cow, ''Human Nature'', 1(2), 28–36
The cow is sacred in India, states Harris, not because of superstitious, capricious and ignorant beliefs, but because of real economic imperatives and cattle's role in the Indian tradition of integrated living. Cattle became essential in India, just like dogs or cars became essential in other human cultures, states Harris.


Animal cruelty

The slaughterhouses in India have been accused of cruelty against animals by
PETA People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA; ) is an American animal rights nonprofit organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president. Founded in March 1980 by Newkirk and animal right ...
and other humane treatment of animals-groups. According to PETA and these groups, the slaughterhouse workers slit animals' throats with dull blades and let them bleed to death. Cattle are skinned and dismembered while they are still alive and in full view of other animals. The Supreme Court of India, in February 2017, ordered the state governments to stop the illegal slaughterhouses and set up enforcement committees to monitor the treatment of animals used for meat and leather. The Court has also ruled that the Indian Constitution requires Indian citizens to show compassion to the animal kingdom, respect the fundamental rights of animals, and asked the states to prevent cruelty to animals.Supreme Court stays high court judgment on cow slaughter
The Times of India (24 January 2017)


Vigilantism

According to Judith Walsh, widespread cow protection riots occurred repeatedly in
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
in the 1880s and 1890s. These were observed in regions of
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
, United Provinces, Bihar,
Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...
, Bombay Presidency and in parts of South
Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...
(Rangoon). The anti-Cow Killing riots of 1893 in Punjab caused the death of at least 100 people. The 1893 cow killing riots started during the Muslim festival of Bakr-Id, the riot repeated in 1894, and they were the largest riots in
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
after the
1857 revolt Events January–March * January 1 – The biggest Estonian newspaper, ''Postimees'', is established by Johann Voldemar Jannsen. * January 7 – The partly French-owned London General Omnibus Company begins operating. * Janu ...
. One of the issues, states Walsh, in these riots was "the Muslim slaughter of cows for meat, particularly as part of religious festivals such as Bakr-Id". According to Mark Doyle, the first cow protection societies on the Indian subcontinent were started by Kukas of
Sikhism Sikhism is an Indian religion and Indian philosophy, philosophy that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent around the end of the 15th century CE. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups, major religio ...
(also called Namdharis). The Sikh Kukas or Namdharis were agitating for cow protection after the British annexed Punjab. In 1871, states Peter van der Veer, Sikhs killed Muslim butchers of cows in
Amritsar Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...
and
Ludhiana Ludhiana () is the most populous Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab.164.100.161.224 http://164.100.161.224 › filesPDF Ludhiana State: Punjab Business & Industrial Centre, Tier 2 1 ... The city has an estima ...
, and viewed cow protection as a "sign of the moral quality of the state". According to Barbara Metcalf and Thomas Metcalf, Sikhs were agitating for the well-being of cows in the 1860s, and their ideas spread to
Hindu reform movements Contemporary groups, collectively termed Hindu reform movements, reform Hinduism, neo-Hinduism, or Hindu revivalism, strive to introduce regeneration and reform to Hinduism, both in a religious or spiritual and in a societal sense. The movement ...
. Cattle protection-related violence continued at numerous occasions, often over the Muslim festival of Bakri-Id, in the first half of the 20th century. Cow slaughter in contemporary India has triggered riots and violent vigilante groups. According to PUDR, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, a Hindu group, and the Gauraksha Samiti have defended violent vigilantism around cow protection as sentiments against the "sin of cow-slaughter" and not related to "the social identity of the victims". Various groups, such as the families of Dalits who were victims of a mob violence linked to cow-slaughter in 2002, did not question the legitimacy of cow protection. According to a Reuters report, citing IndiaSpend analysis, a total of "44 Indians – 39 of them Muslims – have been killed and 124 injured", between 2010 and June 2018 in cow-related violence.


Stray cattle

Fear of arrest, persecution, and of lynching by cow vigilantes has reduced the trading of cattle. Once a cow stops giving milk, feeding and maintenance of the cow becomes a financial burden on the farmer who cannot afford their upkeep. Cattle that farmers are unable to sell are eventually abandoned. India has over 5 million stray cattle according to the livestock census data released in January 2020. The stray cow attacks on humans and crops in both urban and rural areas is an issue for the residents. Stray cattle are a nuisance to traffic in urban areas and frequently cause road accidents. The problem of solid waste pollution, especially
plastic pollution Plastic pollution is the accumulation of plastic objects and particles (e.g. plastic bottles, bags and microbeads) in the Earth's environment that adversely affects humans, wildlife and their habitat. Plastics that act as pollutants are catego ...
and garbage dumped at public places, poses a risk to stray cattle which feed on garbage.


Legislation

The "Preservation, protection and improvement of stock and prevention of animal diseases, veterinary training and practice" is Entry 15 of the State List of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution, meaning that State Legislatures have exclusive powers to legislate the prevention of slaughter and preservation of cattle. The prohibition of cow slaughter is also one of the Directive Principles of State Policy contained in Article 48 of the Constitution. It reads, "The State shall endeavour to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle." Several State Governments and Union Territories (UTs) have enacted cattle preservation laws in one form or the other.
Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...
,
Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...
,
Meghalaya Meghalaya (; "the abode of clouds") is a states and union territories of India, state in northeast India. Its capital is Shillong. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the Assam: the United Khasi Hills an ...
,
Mizoram Mizoram is a states and union territories of India, state in northeastern India, with Aizawl as its Capital city, capital and largest city. It shares 722-kilometres (449 miles) of international borders with Bangladesh to the west, and Myanmar t ...
,
Nagaland Nagaland () is a States and union territories of India, state in the northeast India, north-eastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south, and the Naga Sel ...
,
Tripura Tripura () is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a populat ...
,
Lakshadweep Lakshadweep () is a union territory of India. It is an archipelago of 36 islands divided into three island subgroups: the Amindivi Islands in the north, the Laccadive Islands (separated from Amindivi roughly by the 11th parallel north), and th ...
, and the
Andaman and Nicobar Islands The Andaman and Nicobar Islands is a union territory of India comprising 572 islands, of which only 38 are inhabited. The islands are grouped into two main clusters: the northern Andaman Islands and the southern Nicobar Islands, separated by a ...
have no legislation. All other states/UTs have enacted legislation to prevent the slaughter of cow and its progeny. Kerala is a major consumer of beef and has no regulation on the slaughter of cow and its progeny. As a result, cattle is regularly smuggled into Kerala from the neighbouring States of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, for the purpose of slaughter. There have been several attacks on cow transporters, on the suspicion of carrying cows for slaughter. Between May 2015 and May 2017, at least ten Muslims were killed in these attacks. In 1958, Muslims of Bihar petitioned the Supreme Court of India that the ban on cow slaughter violated their religious right. The Court unanimously rejected their claim. In several cases, such as ''Mohd. Hanif Qureshi v. State of Bihar'' (AIR 1959 SCR 629), ''Hashumatullah v. State of Madhya Pradesh'', ''Abdul Hakim and others v. State of Bihar'' (AIR 1961 SC 448) and ''Mohd. Faruk v. State of Madhya Pradesh'', the
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
has held that, "A total ban n cattle slaughterwas not permissible if, under economic conditions, keeping useless bull or bullock be a burden on the society and therefore not in the public interest." The clause "under economic conditions, keeping useless (...)" has been studied by the Animal Welfare Board of India which determined that the fuel made from cow dung for household cooking purposes in the Indian society suggests that the cattle is never useless while it produces dung. In May 2016,
Bombay High Court The High Court of Bombay is the High courts of India, high court of the States and union territories of India, states of Maharashtra and Goa in India, and the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. It is seated primarily ...
gave the judgement that consumption or possession of beef is legal under Article 21 of
Constitution of India The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India, legal document of India, and the longest written national constitution in the world. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures ...
, but upheld the ban on cow slaughter in the state of Maharashtra. The Supreme Court of India heard a case between 2004 and 2017. The case petitioned the Court to order a ban on the common illegal treatment of animals during transport and slaughter. In February 2017, the Court ordered a state governments to stop the illegal slaughterhouses and set up enforcement committees to monitor the treatment of animals used for meat and leather.Animals on way to slaughterhouse treated inhumanly
Vijay V Singh, The Times of India (10 June 2017);
PETA Calls on all States to Stop Illegal Slaughter of Animals as Per Supreme Court Order
Nikunj Sharma and Shambhavi Tiwari, PETA India (31 March 2017)
The Court has also ruled, according to a Times of India report, that "it was evident from the combined reading of Articles 48 and 51- A(g) of the
ndian Ndian is a Departments of Cameroon, department of Southwest Region, Cameroon, Southwest Region in Cameroon. It is located in the humid tropical rainforest zone about southeast of Yaoundé, the capital. History Ndian division was formed in 1975 ...
Constitution that citizens must show compassion to the animal kingdom. The animals have their own fundamental rights. Article 48 specifically lays down that the state shall endeavour to prohibit the slaughter of cows and calves, other milch and draught cattle".


Non-uniformity

No state law explicitly bans the consumption of beef. There is a lack of uniformity among State laws governing cattle slaughter. The strictest laws are in
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...
,
Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...
,
Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...
,
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
, Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), ,
Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a Kashmir#Kashmir dispute, dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India an ...
,
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
,
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...
and
Uttarakhand Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...
, where the slaughter of cow and its progeny, including bulls and bullocks of all ages, is completely banned. However, in Uttarakhand, slaughter of cows and bulls which are deemed to be injured or otherwise useless, is permitted with necessary permission. Most States prohibit the slaughter of cows of all ages. However,
Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...
and
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
permit the slaughter of cows of over the ages of 10 and 14 years, respectively. Most States prohibit the slaughter of calves, whether male or female. With the exception of Bihar and Rajasthan, where age of a calf is given as below 3 years, the other States have not defined the age of a calf. According to the National Commission on Cattle, the definition of a calf being followed in Maharashtra, by some executive instructions, was "below the age of 1 year". In
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu is a union territory in India. The territory was constituted through the merger of the former territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Plans for the proposed merger were announced by th ...
, Delhi,
Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...
, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand violation of State laws on cattle slaughter are both cognizable and non-bailable offences. Most of other states specify that offences would be cognizable only. The maximum term of imprisonment varies from 6 months to 14 years(life-term) and the fine from 1,000 to 5,00,000. Delhi and Madhya Pradesh have fixed a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment at 6 months. Cows are routinely shipped to states with lower or no requirement for slaughter, even though it is illegal in most states to ship animals across state borders to be slaughtered. Many illegal
slaughterhouse In livestock agriculture and the meat industry, a slaughterhouse, also called an abattoir (), is a facility where livestock animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a mea ...
s operate in large cities such as
Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
and
Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
. As of 2004, there were 3,600 legal and 30,000 illegal slaughterhouses in India. Efforts to close them down have, so far, been largely unsuccessful. In 2013,
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
estimated that there were 3,100 illegal and 6 licensed slaughterhouses in the State.


Legislative history


Constituent Assembly

After India attained Independence, the members of the
Constituent Assembly A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...
, a body consisting of indirectly elected representatives set up for the purpose of drafting a constitution for India, debated the question of making a provision for the protection and preservation of the cow in the Constitution of India. An amendment for including a provision in the Directive Principles of State Policy as Article 38A was introduced by Pandit Thakur Dass Bhargava. The amendment read, "The State shall endeavour to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall in particular take steps for preserving and improving the breeds of cattle and prohibit the slaughter of cow and other useful cattle, specially milch and draught cattle and their young stock". Another amendment motion was moved by Seth Govind Das, who sought to extend the scope of the provisions for prohibiting slaughter to cover cow and its progeny by adding the following words at the end of Bhargava's amendment, "'The word "cow' includes bulls, bullocks, young stock of genus cow". Bhargava's amendment was passed by the Constituent Assembly, but Das' was rejected. Pandit Thakur Dass Bhargava (
East Punjab East Punjab was a state of Dominion of India from 1947 until 1950. It consisted parts of the Punjab Province of British India that remained in India following the partition of the state between the new dominions of Pakistan and India by the ...
), Seth Govind Das (
Central Provinces and Berar The Central Provinces and Berar was a province of British India and later the Dominion of India which existed from 1903 to 1950. It was formed by the merger of the Central Provinces with the province of Berar, which was territory leased by the ...
), Shibban Lal Saksena ( United Provinces), Ram Sahai (United State of
Gwalior Gwalior (Hindi: , ) is a major city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh; It is known as the Music City of India having oldest Gwalior gharana, musical gharana in existence. It is a major sports, cultural, industrial, and political c ...
-
Indore Indore (; ISO 15919, ISO: , ) is the largest and most populous Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The commercial capital of the state, it has been declared as the List of cleanest cities in India, cleanest city of In ...
- Malwa:
Madhya Bharat Madhya Bharat, also known as Malwa Union, was an Indian state in west-central India, created on 28 May 1948 from twenty-five princely states which until 1947 had been part of the Central India Agency, with Jiwajirao Scindia as its Rajpramuk ...
), Raghu Vira (Central Provinces and Berar) and Raghunath Vinayak Dhulekar (United Provinces) strongly pleaded for the inclusion of a provision in the Constitution for prohibiting the slaughter of cows. Although some members were keen on including the provision in the chapter on
Fundamental Rights Fundamental rights are a group of rights that have been recognized by a high degree of protection from encroachment. These rights are specifically identified in a constitution, or have been found under due process of law. The United Nations' Susta ...
but, later as a compromise and on the basis of an assurance given by
B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Bhīmrāo Rāmjī Āmbēḍkar; 14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who chaired the committee that drafted the Constitution of India based on t ...
, the amendment was moved for inclusion as a Directive Principle of State Policy. Bhargava stated that "While moving this amendment, I have hesitation in stating that for people like me and those that do not agree with the point of view of Ambedkar and others, this entails, in a way, a sort of sacrifice. Seth Govind Das had sent one such amendment to be included in the Fundamental Rights and other members also had sent similar amendments. To my mind, it would have been much better if this could have been incorporated in the Fundamental Rights, but some of my Assembly friends differed and it is the desire of Ambedkar that this matter, instead of being included in Fundamental Rights should be incorporated in the Directive Principles. As a matter of fact, it is the agreed opinion of the Assembly that this problem should be solved in such a manner that the objective is gained without using any sort of coercion. I have purposely adopted this course, as to my mind, the amendment fulfills our object and is midway between the Directive Principles and the Fundamental Rights." Bhargava also observed that "I do not want that, due to its inclusion in the Fundamental Rights, non-
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
s should complain that they have been forced to accept a certain thing against their will." The result of the debate in the Constituent Assembly was that the Bhargava's amendment was carried and the Article in its present form exists as Article 48 of the Constitution, as one of the Directive Principles of State Policy.


Parliament

A number of Private Member's Bills and Resolutions regarding the prevention of cow slaughter have been introduced in both Houses of Parliament, from time to time. However, none have been successful in obtaining a complete nationwide ban on cow slaughter. Attempts to address the issue through a central legislation or otherwise are described below.
Vinoba Bhave Vinayak Narahar Bhave, also known as Vinoba Bhave (; 11 September 1895 – 15 November 1982), was an Indian advocate of nonviolence and human rights. Often called ''Acharya'' (Teacher in Sanskrit), he is best known for the Bhoodan Movement. He ...
went on an indefinite fast from 22 April 1979 demanding that the Governments of West Bengal and Kerala agree to enact legislation banning cow slaughter. On 12 April 1979, a Private Members Resolution was passed in the Lok Sabha, by 42 votes to 8, with 12 absentees. It read, "This House directs the Government to ensure total ban on the slaughter of cows of all ages and calves in consonance with the Directive Principles laid down in Article 48 of the Constitution as interpreted by the Supreme Court, as well as necessitated by strong economic considerations based on the recommendations of the Cattle Preservation and Development Committee and the reported fast by Acharya Vinoba Bhave from 21st April, 1979". Then Prime Minister
Morarji Desai Morarji Ranchhodji Desai (29 February 1896 – 10 April 1995) was an Indian politician and Indian independence activist, independence activist who served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India between 1977 and 1979 leading th ...
later announced in Parliament that the government would initiate action for amending the Constitution with a view to conferring legislative competence on the Union Parliament for legislating on the subject of cow protection. Accordingly, a Constitution Amendment Bill seeking to bring the subject of prevention of cow slaughter on to the
Concurrent List The Concurrent List or List-III (Seventh Schedule) is a list of 52 items (though the last subject is numbered 47) given in the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India. It includes the power to be considered by both the union and state gove ...
was introduced in the Lok Sabha on 18 May 1979. The Bill, however, lapsed on account of dissolution of the Sixth Lok Sabha. Bhave reiterated his demand for a total ban on cow slaughter in July 1980, while addressing the All India Goseva Sammelan. He also requested that cows should not be taken from one State to another. In 1981, the question of amending the Constitution by introducing a Bill was again examined by the Government, but, in view of the sensitive nature of the issue and owing to political compulsions a "wait and watch" policy was adopted. A number of complaints were received from time to time that despite the ban on the slaughter of cow and its progeny, healthy bullocks were being slaughtered under one pretext or the other and calves were being maimed, so that they could be declared useless and ultimately slaughtered. Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and stateswoman who served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India from 1966 to 1977 and again from 1980 un ...
, in a letter dated 24 February 1982 wrote to the Chief Ministers of 14 states viz. Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir, and expressed her desire that the ban be enforced in letter and spirit, that the ban on cow slaughter not allowed to be circumvented by devious methods, and that committees to inspect cattle before they are admitted to slaughter houses be established. Recognizing that the problem basically arose on account of inaction or obstruction on the part of a few States and large scale smuggling of cows and calves from a prohibition State to a non-prohibition State like Kerala was taking place, a suggestion was made that this problem be brought to the notice of the
Sarkaria Commission Sarkaria Commission was set up in June 1983 by the central government of India. Its charter was to examine the relationship and balance of power between state and central governments in the country and suggest changes within the framework of Co ...
, which was making recommendations regarding Centre-State relations, but this idea was dropped as the commission was then in the final stages of report-writing.


Legislation by state or union territory

The legal status of cattle slaughter in
Andaman and Nicobar Islands The Andaman and Nicobar Islands is a union territory of India comprising 572 islands, of which only 38 are inhabited. The islands are grouped into two main clusters: the northern Andaman Islands and the southern Nicobar Islands, separated by a ...
and
Lakshadweep Lakshadweep () is a union territory of India. It is an archipelago of 36 islands divided into three island subgroups: the Amindivi Islands in the north, the Laccadive Islands (separated from Amindivi roughly by the 11th parallel north), and th ...
is unknown.


Andhra Pradesh

''The Andhra Pradesh Prohibition of Cow Slaughter and Animal Preservation Act, 1977'' governs the slaughter of cattle (cows and buffaloes) in
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
and
Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...
. Therefore, the law governing the slaughter of cattle in Andhra Pradesh is the same as that in Telangana. In the case of cows, the law makes a distinction between males and females. The slaughter of female cows and of heifers is totally forbidden. The slaughter of bulls and bullocks is permitted upon obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate, to be issued only if the animal is "not economical or is not likely to become economical for the purpose of breeding or draught/agricultural operations." The certificate can be issued by any veterinary doctor and is a source of much corruption and misuse. The law also prohibits the slaughter of calves, whether male or female. The age limit of "calf" is not defined. In the case of buffaloes, the law firstly forbids in absolute terms the slaughter of calves, whether male or female. Again, the age limit of "calf" is not defined and therefore there is much misuse, resulting in the slaughter of many young male animals who are only a few months old. Secondly, the law forbids the slaughter of adult buffaloes unless a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate is issued by a veterinarian. The certificate can be issued if the animal is deemed "uneconomical for purposes of milking, breeding or draught/agricultural operations." Thus, the law permits the slaughter of all adult male buffaloes and of all old and "spent" female buffaloes whose milk yield is not economical. For this reason, the slaughter of buffaloes, both male and female, is rampant in Andhra Pradesh. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to maximum of 6 months or fine of up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
.


Arunachal Pradesh

No ban on cattle slaughter.


Assam

''The Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 1950'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...
. Slaughter of all cattle, including bulls, bullocks, cows, calves, male and female buffaloes and buffalo calves is prohibited. Slaughter of cattle is permitted on obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate, to be given if cattle is over 15 years of age or has become permanently incapacitated for work or breeding due to injury, deformity or any incurable disease. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to maximum of 6 months or fine of up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
. In 2021 Assam Assembly passed a bill that prohibits the slaughter or sale of beef within a 5-km radius of any temple. The legislation seeks to ensure that permission for slaughter is not granted to areas that are predominantly inhabited by Hindu, Jain, Sikh and other non-beef eating communities or places that fall within a 5-km radius of a temple, satra and any other institution as may be prescribed by the authorities. Exemptions, however, might be granted for certain religious occasions.


Bihar

''The Bihar Preservation and Improvement of Animals Act, 1955'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
. Slaughter of cow and calf is totally prohibited. Slaughter of bulls or bullocks of over 25 years of age or permanently incapacitated for work or breeding due to injury, deformity or any incurable disease is permitted. The law also bans the export of cows, calves, bulls and bullocks from Bihar, for any purpose. The law defines a bull as "an uncastrated male of above 3 years", a bullock as "castrated male of above 3 years", a calf as "male or female below 3 years" and a cow as "female above 3 years". Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to maximum of 6 months or fine of up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
.


Chandigarh

''The Punjab Prohibition of Cow Slaughter Act, 1955'' applies to
Chandigarh Chandigarh is a city and union territory in northern India, serving as the shared capital of the states of Punjab and Haryana. Situated near the foothills of the Shivalik range of Himalayas, it borders Haryana to the east and Punjab in the ...
,
Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...
and
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
. Therefore, the law governing the slaughter of cattle in Chandigarh has the same provisions as that in Haryana and Punjab. Slaughter of cow (includes bull, bullock, ox, heifer or calf), and its progeny, is totally illegal. The export of cattle for slaughter and the sale of beef are both illegal. This "does not include flesh of cow contained in sealed containers and imported", meaning that restaurants in the states can serve beef, if they can prove its meat has been imported into the state. The law also excuses the killing of cows "by accident or in self defense". Consumption is not penalized. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to a maximum of 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The law places the burden of proof on the accused. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence.


Chhattisgarh

"Chhattisgarh Agricultural Cattle Preservation Act, 2004" applies to the state. The operative sections of the Act prohibit slaughter of all agricultural cattle; possession of the beef of any agricultural cattle; and, transport of agricultural cattle ‘for the purpose of its slaughter… or with the knowledge that it will be or is likely to be, so slaughtered’. The Schedule lists Agricultural Cattle as: 1. Cows of all ages. 2. Calves of cows and of she buffaloes. 3. Bulls. 4. Bullocks. 5. Male and Female buffaloes.


Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu

''The Goa, Daman & Diu Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 1978'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu is a union territory in India. The territory was constituted through the merger of the former territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Plans for the proposed merger were announced by th ...
. Under the 1978 Act, which also applies to
Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...
, there is a total ban on slaughter of cow (includes cow, heifer or calf), except when the cow is suffering pain or contagious disease or for medical research. The law does not define the age of a "calf". There is also a total prohibition on the sale of beef or beef products in any form in the
union territory Among the states and union territories of India, a Union Territory (UT) is a region that is directly governed by the Government of India, central government of India, as opposed to the states, which have their own State governments of India, s ...
. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence.


Delhi

''The Delhi Agricultural Cattle Preservation Act, 1994'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...
. Slaughter of all agricultural cattle is totally prohibited. The law defines "agricultural cattle" as cows of all ages, calves of cows of all ages, and bulls and bullocks. The slaughter of buffaloes is legal. The possession of the flesh of agricultural cattle slaughtered outside Delhi is also prohibited. The transport or export of cattle for slaughter is also prohibited. Export for other purposes is permitted on declaration that cattle will not be slaughtered. However, export to a state where slaughter is not banned by law is not permitted. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to 5 years and fine up to 10,000, provided that minimum imprisonment should not be for less than 6 months and fine not less than 1,000. The law places the burden of proof on the accused. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence.


Goa

''The Goa, Daman & Diu Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 1978'' and ''The Goa Animal Preservation Act, 1995'' govern the slaughter of cattle in
Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...
. Under the 1978 Act, which also applies to
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu is a union territory in India. The territory was constituted through the merger of the former territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Plans for the proposed merger were announced by th ...
, there is a total ban on slaughter of cow (includes cow, heifer or calf), except when the cow is suffering pain or contagious disease or for medical research. The law does not define the age of a "calf". Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence. This act though, has not been necessarily implemented. ''The Goa Animal Preservation Act, 1995'' applies to bulls, bullocks, male calves and buffaloes of all ages. All the animals can be slaughtered on obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate which is not given if the animal is likely to become economical for draught, breeding or milk (in the case of she-buffaloes) purposes. The sale of beef obtained in contravention of the above provisions is prohibited. However, sale of beef imported from other states is legal. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to maximum of 6 months or fine of up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a cognizable offence.


Gujarat

The ''Bombay Animal Preservation Act, 1954'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...
. Slaughter of cows, calves of cows, bulls and bullocks is totally prohibited. Slaughter of buffaloes is permitted on certain conditions. Anyone violating the law could be punished with imprisonment up to maximum of 6 months or fine of up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
. The ''Gujarat Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act, 2011'' was passed unopposed in the
Gujarat Legislative Assembly The Gujarat Legislative Assembly or Gujarat Vidhan Sabha is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Gujarat, in the state capital Gandhinagar. Presently, 182 members of the Legislative Assembly are directly elected from single-member ...
, with support from the main opposition party, on 27 September 2011. The amendment, which came into effect in October 2011, criminalized transporting the animal for the purpose of slaughter and included a provision to confiscate the vehicle used for carrying cow meat. It also increased the maximum jail term for slaughtering cattle to 7 years and maximum fine to 50,000. In 2017, the Gujarat Assembly amended the bill further extending the punishment and fine. The punishment was increased to a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of 'life term of a 14 years', and the fine was enhanced to the range of ₹1 lakh – ₹5 lakh. The new law also made offences under the amended Act non-bailable.


Haryana

''Haryana Gauvansh Sanrakshan and Gausamvardhan Act, 2015'' applies to
Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...
. Earlier, "The Punjab Prohibition of Cow Slaughter Act, 1955" was the law governing the slaughter of cattle in Haryana has the same provisions as that in
Chandigarh Chandigarh is a city and union territory in northern India, serving as the shared capital of the states of Punjab and Haryana. Situated near the foothills of the Shivalik range of Himalayas, it borders Haryana to the east and Punjab in the ...
,
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
and
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
. However, Haryana has stricter penalties for violating the law than the other two states and Chandigarh, even prior to 2015 Act. Slaughter of cow (includes bull, bullock, ox, heifer or calf), and its progeny, is "totally prohibited". The export of cattle for slaughter and the sale of beef are both prohibited. This "does not include flesh of cow contained in sealed containers and imported", meaning that restaurants in the states can serve beef, if they can prove its meat has been imported into the state. The law also excuses the killing of cows "by accident or in self defense". Consumption of beef is not penalized. Anyone violating the law can be punished with rigorous imprisonment up to 10 years or fine up to 1 lakh or both. The law places the burden of proof on the accused. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence.


Himachal Pradesh

''The Punjab Prohibition of Cow Slaughter Act, 1955'' applies to
Chandigarh Chandigarh is a city and union territory in northern India, serving as the shared capital of the states of Punjab and Haryana. Situated near the foothills of the Shivalik range of Himalayas, it borders Haryana to the east and Punjab in the ...
,
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
and
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
. Therefore, the law governing the slaughter of cattle in Himachal Pradesh is the same as that in Chandigarh and Punjab. Slaughter of cow (includes bull, bullock, ox, heifer or calf), and its progeny, is totally prohibited. The export of cattle for slaughter and the sale of beef are both prohibited. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to a maximum of 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The law places the burden of proof on the accused. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence.


Jammu and Kashmir

''The
Ranbir Penal Code Jammu and Kashmir State Ranbir Penal Code or RPC was the main criminal code applicable in the erstwhile Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian Penal Code, applicable elsewhere in India, was not applicable here under Article 370 of the ...
, 1932'' governed the slaughter of cattle in Jammu and Kashmir which is now repealed. Voluntary slaughter of any bovine animal such as ox, bull, cow or calf shall be punished with imprisonment of either description which may extend to 10 years and shall also be liable to fine. The fine may extend to 5 times the price of the animals slaughtered as determined by the court. Possession of the flesh of slaughtered animals is also an offence punishable with imprisonment up to 1 year and fine up to 500. In 2019, the 150 year old ban on cow slaughter was lifted, an unexpected result of the end of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. The move to re-criminalise beef consumption and sale on the grounds of environmental activism in India, was overturned by the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.


Jharkhand

''The Bihar Preservation and Improvement of Animals Act, 1955'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
. Slaughter of cow and calf is totally prohibited. Slaughter of bulls or bullocks of over 25 years of age or permanently incapacitated for work or breeding due to injury, deformity or any incurable disease is permitted. The law also bans the export of cows, calves, bulls and bullocks from Jharkhand for any purpose. The law defines a bull as "an uncastrated male of above 3 years", a bullock as "castrated male of above 3 years", a calf as "male or female below 3 years" and a cow as "female above 3 years". Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to maximum of 6 months or fine of up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
.


Karnataka

''The Karnataka Prevention of Cow Slaughter and Cattle Preservation Act, 1964'' governed the slaughter of cattle in
Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
until 2020 and was replaced by ''The Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, 2020''. In 2010, the Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, 2010 and in 2014, the Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act (Amendment), 2014 were introduced by subsequently withdrawn. Up to 2020, the slaughter of cow, calf of a cow (male or female) or calf of a she-buffalo totally prohibited. Slaughter of bulls, bullocks and adult buffaloes was permitted on obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate provided cattle is over 12 years of age or is permanently incapacitated for breeding, draught or milk due to injury, deformity or any other cause. Transport for slaughter to a place outside the state not permitted. Sale, purchase or disposal of a cow or a calf, for slaughter, is not permitted. Up to 2020 anyone violating the law could be punished with imprisonment up to maximum of six months or fine of up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
. In January 2021, the Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, 2020 became official. This act applied to any breed of cattle up to twelve years of age. With the act, people found guilty of breaking the law would receive a prison sentence of 3 to 7 years. People found guilty would also receive a monetary fine between 50,000 rupees to 10 lakhs depending on the number of times of breaking this law. Only Buffaloes thirteen years and older are exempted from this law. Buffaloes that cannot produce milk or reproduce are also exempted.


Kerala

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...
permits the slaughter of every type of cattle. Slaughtering of animals is formally regulated by the government in order to maintain public health and sanitation. Panchayat laws permit slaughter only in approved slaughter houses. Beef accounts for 25% of all meat consumed in Kerala. Beef is sold at meat shops while cattle is traded at weekly markets across the state. Further, it has been ruled an obligation of panchayat to provide for meat stalls, including those that may sell beef.


Ladakh

After the Abrogation of Article 370, there is no prohibition.


Madhya Pradesh

''The Madhya Pradesh Agricultural Cattle Preservation Act, 1959'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...
. Slaughter of cows, calves of cows, bulls, bullocks and buffalo calves is prohibited. However, bulls and bullocks are being slaughtered in the light of a
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
judgement, provided the cattle is over 20 years or has become unfit for work or breeding. Transport or export of cattle for slaughter not permitted. Export for any purpose to another State where cow slaughter is not banned by law is not permitted. The sale, purchase and/or disposal of cow and its progeny and possession of flesh of cattle is prohibited. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to a maximum of 3 years and fine of 5,000 or both. Normally imprisonment shall not be less than 6 months and fine not less than 1,000. The law places the burden of proof on the accused. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
.


Maharashtra

''The Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act, 1976'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...
. Slaughter of cows (includes a heifer or male or female calf of a cow) is totally prohibited. Slaughter of bulls, bullocks and buffaloes is allowed on obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter certificate", if it is not likely to become economical for draught, breeding or milk (in the case of she-buffaloes) purposes. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to a maximum of 6 months and a fine of up to 1,000. The law places the burden of proof on the accused. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
. Maharashtra cow slaughter ban was later extended to ban the sale and export of beef, with a punishment of 5 years jail, and/or a 10,000 fine for possession or sale. This law came into effect from 2 March 2015.


Manipur

In
Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...
, cattle slaughter is restricted under a
proclamation A proclamation (Lat. ''proclamare'', to make public by announcement) is an official declaration issued by a person of authority to make certain announcements known. Proclamations are currently used within the governing framework of some nations ...
by the
Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...
in the Durbar Resolution of 1939. The proclamation states, "According to
Hindu religion Hinduism () is an umbrella term for a range of Indian religious and spiritual traditions ( ''sampradaya''s) that are unified by adherence to the concept of ''dharma'', a cosmic order maintained by its followers through rituals and right ...
the killing of cow is a sinful act. It is also against Manipuri Custom." However, beef is largely consumed in the hill districts with large
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
populations and sold openly in cities like
Churachandpur Churachandpur ( IPA: ''/tʃʊRVːˌtʃaːnɗpʊr/),'' locally known as Lamka is the second largest town in the Indian state of Manipur and the district headquarters of the Churachandpur district. The name "Churachandpur" was transferred from ...
.


Meghalaya

No ban on cattle slaughter.


Mizoram

No ban on cattle slaughter.


Nagaland

No ban on cattle slaughter.


Odisha

''The Orissa Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 1960'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
. Slaughter of cows (includes heifer or calf) is totally prohibited. Slaughter of bulls and bullocks is permitted, on obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate, provided that the cattle is over 14 years of age or has become permanently unfit for breeding or draught. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to a maximum of 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
.


Puducherry

''The Pondicherry Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 1968'' governs the slaughter of cattle in Puducherry. Slaughter of cows (includes heifer or calf) is totally prohibited. Slaughter of bulls and bullocks is permitted, on obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate, provided that the cattle is over age of 15 years or has become permanently unfit for breeding or draught. The sale and/or transport of beef is prohibited. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to a maximum of 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence.


Punjab

''The Punjab Prohibition of Cow Slaughter Act, 1955'' applies to
Chandigarh Chandigarh is a city and union territory in northern India, serving as the shared capital of the states of Punjab and Haryana. Situated near the foothills of the Shivalik range of Himalayas, it borders Haryana to the east and Punjab in the ...
,
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
and
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
. Therefore, the law governing the slaughter of cattle in Punjab has the same provisions as that in Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh. Slaughter of cow (includes bull, bullock, ox, heifer or calf), and its progeny, is totally illegal. The export of cattle for slaughter and the sale of beef are both illegal. This "does not include flesh of cow contained in sealed containers and imported", meaning that restaurants in the states can serve beef, if they can prove its meat has been imported into the state. The law also excuses the killing of cows "by accident or in self defense". Consumption is not penalized. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to a maximum of 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The law places the burden of proof on the accused. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence.


Rajasthan

''The Rajasthan Bovine Animal (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation of Temporary Migration or Export) Act, 1995'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...
. Slaughter of all bovine animals (includes cow, calf, heifer, bull or bullocks) is prohibited. Possession, sale and/or transport of beef and beef products is prohibited. The export of bovine animals for slaughter is prohibited. The law requires custody of seized animals to be given to any recognized voluntary animal welfare agency failing which to any
Goshala Gaushalas or Goshalas () are protective shelters for stray cow, stray cows in India. Government grants and donations are the primary source of income of the cow shelters in India. Since 2014, when BJP government came into power in India, India h ...
, Gosadan or a suitable person who volunteers to maintain the animal. The Government of Rajasthan has also introduced a bill (Bill No. 16/2015) to ban migration out of state and slaughter of camels in the state. Anyone violating the law can be punished with rigorous imprisonment of not less than 1 year and up to a maximum of 2 years and fine up to 10,000. The law places the burden of proof on the accused.


Sikkim

Under ''The Sikkim Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 2017'', cow slaughter is a non-bailable offence in
Sikkim Sikkim ( ; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Koshi Province of Nepal in the west, and West Bengal in the ...
.


Tamil Nadu

''The Tamil Nadu Animal Preservation Act, 1958'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
. All animals may be slaughtered upon obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate. The law defines "animals" as bulls, bullocks, cows, calves; and buffaloes of all ages. The certificate is issued when an animal is over 10 years of age, unfit for labor, breeding or had become permanently incapacitated for work and breeding due to injury deformity or any incurable disease. Anyone violating the Act can be punished with imprisonment of up to 3 years or fine up to 1,000 or both.


Telangana

''The Andhra Pradesh Prohibition of Cow Slaughter and Animal Preservation Act, 1977'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
and
Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...
. Therefore, the law governing the slaughter of cattle in Telangana is the same as that in Andhra Pradesh. Slaughter of cows (includes heifer, or a calf, whether male or female of a cow) is prohibited. The law does not define the age of a "calf". Slaughter of bulls and bullocks is allowed on obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate, to be given only if the animal is not economical or is not likely to become economical for the purpose of breeding or draught/agricultural operations. Anyone violating the law can be punished with imprisonment up to maximum of 6 months or fine of up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a
cognizable offence Cognisable offence and non-cognisable offence are classifications of crime used in the legal system of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Non-cognisable offences includes misbehavior, public annoyance etc., while cognisable offences are ...
.


Tripura

There exists, as of 2018, no ban on cattle slaughter in
Tripura Tripura () is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a populat ...
. The consumption of beef, however, has been historically rather limited due to religious and cultural reasons given that the erstwhile Princely State of Tripura used to be under the rule of the Hindu Manikya kings during the British Raj and emerged as an overwhelmingly Hindu-majority state after the partition of
Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...
into
East Bengal East Bengal (; ''Purbô Bangla/Purbôbongo'') was the eastern province of the Dominion of Pakistan, which covered the territory of modern-day Bangladesh. It consisted of the eastern portion of the Bengal region, and existed from 1947 until 195 ...
(now
Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
) and
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. Tripura is now a
Bengali Hindu Bengali Hindus () are adherents of Hinduism who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. They make up the majority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Assam's Barak Valley ...
majority state.


Uttar Pradesh

''The Uttar Pradesh Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 1955'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...
. Slaughter of cow (includes a heifer and calf) is totally prohibited. Transport of cow outside the State for slaughter is not permitted. The sale of beef is prohibited. The law defines "beef" as the flesh of cow and of such bull or bullock whose slaughter is prohibited under the Act, but does not include such flesh contained in sealed containers and imported into Uttar Pradesh. Anyone violating the Act can be punished with rigorous imprisonment of up to 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence. The Act permitted the slaughter of bull or bullock on obtaining a "fit-for-slaughter" certificate provided it was over the age of 15 years or had become permanently unfit for breeding, draught and any agricultural operations. However, the
Government of Uttar Pradesh The Government of Uttar Pradesh (International Organization for Standardization, ISO: ''Uttara Pradēśa Sarakāra''; often abbreviated as GoUP) is the subnational government of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh with the governor as its appoin ...
issued an ordinance in 2001, prohibiting the slaughter of cow and its progeny. On 6 June 2017, Uttar Pradesh's Chief Minister
Yogi Adityanath Yogi Adityanath (born Ajay Mohan Singh Bisht; 5 June 1972) is an Indian Hindu monk and politician. He is currently serving as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh since 19 March 2017, became the first to hold the office for two consecutive ter ...
directed the state police to take action against cow slaughter and cattle smuggling under the National Security Act and the Gangster Act.


Uttarakhand

''The Uttar Pradesh Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 1955'' governs the slaughter of cattle in
Uttarakhand Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...
. Slaughter of cow (includes a heifer and calf) is totally prohibited. Transport of cow outside the State for slaughter is not permitted. The sale of beef is prohibited. The law defines "beef" as the flesh of cow and of such bull or bullock whose slaughter is prohibited under the Act, but does not include such flesh contained in sealed containers and imported into Uttarakhand. Anyone violating the Act can be punished with rigorous imprisonment of up to 2 years or fine up to 1,000 or both. The crime is treated as a cognizable and non-bailable offence.


West Bengal

In
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
, there is no ban on the consumption of beef or slaughter if carried out in government or municipal slaughterhouses after a certificate from a veterinarian. The ''Animal Slaughter Control Act, 2009'' exempts slaughter for religious purposes; however the Supreme Court has stated that such exemptions are illegal in India.


See also

Related Indian topics: * 1966 anti-cow slaughter agitation * Aani Maani, an Indian film depicting consequences of cow slaughter ban for a Muslim family * Animal sacrifice in Hinduism * Meat consumption among Sikhs * Buffalo meat consumption among Hindus *
Cattle theft in India Cattle theft, more commonly cattle raiding or cattle lifting, is a property crime in India. In the ancient and medieval era India texts, stealing cattle is described as a crime and sin, a motif that appears in Hindu mythologies. In the colonial ...
* Cow protection movement *
Cow vigilante violence in India Cow vigilante violence is a pattern of mob-based collective vigilante violence seen in India. The attacks are perpetuated by Hindu nationalists against non-Hindus (mostly Muslims) to protect cows, which are considered sacred in Hinduism. Since 2 ...
* Cow belt *
Diet in Hinduism Diet in Hinduism signifies the diverse traditions found across the Indian subcontinent. Hindu scriptures promote a Vegetarianism, vegetarian dietary ideal based on the concept of ''ahimsa''—non-violence and compassion towards all beings. Accord ...
* Diet in Sikhism *
Jhatka Jhatka () is a method of slaughtering an animal for meat by a single strike of a sword or axe to sever its head within the Sikh and Hindu religions. This kills the animal almost instantly as opposed to other forms of slaughter. This type of slaug ...
vs
Kutha Kutha, Cuthah, Cuth or Cutha (, Sumerian: Gû.du8.aki, Akkadian: Kûtu), modern Tell Ibrahim (also Tell Habl Ibrahlm) (), is an archaeological site in Babil Governorate, Iraq. The site of Tell Uqair (possibly ancient Urum) is just to the north. ...
methods of slaughter *
Kamadhenu Kamadhenu (, , ), also known as Surabhi (, or , ), is a divine bovine-goddess described in Hinduism as the mother of all cows. She is a miraculous cow of plenty who provides her owner whatever they desire and is often portrayed as the mother o ...
, a divine bovine in Indian mythology * Nandi, the bull mount of
Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...
Related International topics: *
Ashvamedha The Ashvamedha () was a horse sacrifice ritual followed by the Śrauta tradition of Vedic religion. It was used by ancient Indian kings to prove their imperial sovereignty: a horse accompanied by the king's warriors would be released to wander ...
*
Bovid hybrid A bovid hybrid is the Hybrid (biology), hybrid offspring of members of two different species of the bovid family. There are 143 extant species of bovid, and the widespread domestication of several species has led to an interest in hybridisation ...
* Buffalo meat *
Horse slaughter Horse slaughter is the practice of slaughtering horses to produce meat for consumption. Humans have long consumed horse meat; the oldest known cave art, the 30,000-year-old paintings in France's Chauvet Cave, depict horses with other wild animals ...
*
Religious restrictions on the consumption of pork Pork is a food taboo among several religions, including Jews, Muslims, and some Christian denominations. Swine were prohibited in ancient Syria and Phoenicia, and the pig and its flesh represented a taboo observed, Strabo noted, at Comana in Po ...
*
Whale meat Whale meat, broadly speaking, may include all cetaceans (whales, dolphins, porpoises) and all parts of the animal: muscle (meat), organs (offal), skin (muktuk), and fat (blubber). There is relatively little demand for whale meat, compared to far ...
*
Food and drink prohibitions Some people do not eat various specific foods and beverages in conformity with various Religion, religious, Culture, cultural, Law, legal or other societal prohibitions. Many of these prohibitions constitute taboos. Many food taboos and other pro ...


Notes


References


Further reading

* * *'
The British Origin of Cow-slaughter in India
' By Dharampal, T. M. Mukundan. Society for Integrated Development of Himalayas, Mussourie. 2002. ISBN 8187827041


External links


Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries – Report of the National Commission on Cattle (July 2002)
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928132357/http://www.dahd.nic.in/dahd/reports/report-of-the-national-commission-on-cattle.aspx , date=28 September 2013
Various Committees on Cattle
Government of India Abattoirs in India Animals in religion Animals in Buddhism Animal welfare and rights in India Cattle in India Hinduism and cattle Hinduism in India Law of India Livestock Meat processing by country Politics of India Religion in India Christianity in India Islam in India