India, ironically known as one of the top beef exporters globally, faces a disturbing paradox where incidents of violence over beef smuggling and consumption have become alarmingly frequent. Despite the country's significant role in the global beef trade, fueled primarily by buffalo meat exports, certain sections of society engage in brutal acts against those accused of smuggling or consuming beef, often without legal justification or due process.
This contradiction highlights deep-seated cultural and religious tensions, where cow protection sentiments are exploited by vigilantes to justify violent behaviour.
In one such case, Haryana police have arrested five cow vigilantes for allegedly shooting dead a class 12 student after chasing his car for several kilometers, mistaking the boy to be a cattle smuggler. Such actions not only undermine the rule of law but also tarnish the nation's image as a secular, democratic society that respects diverse beliefs and practices.
What is particularly surprising and concerning is the selective outrage, where the economic benefits of beef exports are embraced, yet violence is perpetrated against individuals based on allegations of involvement with beef domestically. This duality raises critical questions about the inconsistent application of laws and the selective moral standards that are tearing at the social fabric of the nation.
To address this issue, the helmsmen require making concerted effort to uphold the rule of law, ensure the protection of all citizens, and foster an environment of mutual respect and tolerance. It is essential for the government to take a firm stand against vigilantism and promote a balanced discourse that reconciles economic practices with cultural sensitivities, ensuring that justice and human dignity are not compromised.
In this context, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given strong statements in the past to cow vigilantes saying that killing in the name of cow is unacceptable. He had made it clear a number of times that no one has the right to take law into his/her hands. Such statements from the top echelon of power had come in wake of several incidents of lynching and murder of people by self-styled cow vigilante groups over rumours of cow slaughter.
As PM's remarks on the issue have testified time and again that killing in the name of cow protection is illegal therefore law should take its own course to teach a befitting lesson to people involved in violence in the name of cow vigilantism as no citizen in the country has right to snatch away the lives of others, no matter what the issue is.
