From CK Nayak
New Delhi: Despite a noticeable growth of the BJP vote bank in Shillong constituency, its Lok Sabha representative Vincent H Pala on Friday opposed any ban on cow slaughter in the country which he apprehends will not only create a food crisis but also deal a big blow to fundamental rights of the minorities.
“This House urges upon the Government to omit the words – “and prohibiting the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle” from Article 48 (Directive Principles of State Policy) of the Constitution of India,” Pala said in a private members’ resolution moved in the Lok Sabha on Friday.
“Article 48 mentions that the State shall endeavour to prohibit the slaughter of cow, calves, milch and draught animals as though these animal varieties are facing extinction but constitute the bulk of human consumption in India,” the resolution said.
The selective inclusion of “cow” in Article 48 is an assertion against the fundamental plank of secularism enshrined as basic feature of the Constitution and embedded in its Preamble, Pala argued.
The ban on slaughter of cow if legislated by the Nation and the States will result in widespread food insecurity and consequent paralysis of basic health of large populations in the country, the former union minister said. “It will also deal a deadly blow to the Fundamental Right to livelihood which includes the right to food of free choice,” he said. Incidentally, no state law explicitly bans consumption of beef but as of August 2013, 24 states and UTs have enacted strict laws that either prohibit the slaughter of cows completely or ban killing cattle under a certain age, which make it difficult for restaurants to source, store or serve beef legally. The laws governing cattle slaughter vary greatly from state to state with some completely banning cattle slaughter, while there is no restriction in other states, most notably, Kerala.
While there are approximately 4,000 slaughter houses operating legally in India, there are estimated to be over 30,000 illegal slaughter houses. Tens of thousands of cattle are sold annually for slaughter and many more are smuggled across the vast and porous Indo-Bangladesh border.
Incidentally, former Governor of Meghalaya Ranjit Shekhar Mooshahary had once given a novel idea to open beef processing units in the Northeast where it is not a taboo and consumed by many. He argued that rampant smuggling of cattle along the Indo-Bangladesh border will reduce to a great extent if such food processing units are set up in the Northeast.