Skip to main content

Modi as Gujarat CM "encouraged" cow vigilantes, were awarded for raiding "illegal" cattle transportation: Report

By A Representative
Did Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his chief ministership of Gujarat, encourage the much abused cow vigilantism, which allegedly is terrorizing minorities and Dalits across India? It would seem so, if the new report, “Lynching without End”, published by a civil rights network, Citizens against Hate, is any indication.
Prepared under the leaderhship of Aman Biradari Trust, which operates under IAS bureaucrat-turned-activist Harsh Mander, the report, to be released on October 2, the Gandhi Jayanti day, says that between 2011 and 2014, the Gujarat government “disbursed Rs 75 lakh in cash rewards to 1,394 vigilantes for raiding illegal cattle transporters and filing FIRs against them.”
Modi, who ruled Gujarat between 2001 and 2014, resigned as chief minister in May 2014 to become India’s Prime Minister in the wake of the BJP’s resounding victory in the Lok Sabha elections under him.
Claiming that these figures are officially available on the Gujarat government’s Gauseva and Gauchar Vikas Board (GGVB) website, the report says, “The GGVB was set up under the animal husbandry department in 1999, but remained defunct for almost a decade before Modi revived it in 2010.”
The report, which has been prepared with the help of several other civil rights organizations, says that the GGVB was given “some steel” by Modi, “who introduced a slew of schemes, including a cash reward of Rs 500 for every FIR registered against cattle smugglers and transporters.”
Pointing out that “there was even a biennial Best Cow Protector award worth Rs 25,000”, the 61 page report suggests, ever since Modi left, the state government has continued to take a belligerent attitude towards cow “protection”.
Thus, it adds, “in March 2017, Gujarat amended its cow protection law to make the slaughter of cows punishable with life imprisonment.” The stringent law was alleged to have been made to further “empowering private cow protection groups.”
Other organizations which helped prepare the report include Anjuman Islamiya, Ranchi; Quill Foundation, New Delhi; Misaal, New Delhi; Yuva Ekta Jagruk Manch, Nuh, Haryana; and Afkar India Foundation, Shamli, Uttar Pradesh.
While there are 24 out of 29 states in India which “currently have various laws on cow protection”, taking “inspiration from Article 48 of the Indian Constitution that mandates the state to prohibit the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle”, the report says, most states are inspired by the “landmark judgment” of Supreme Court in October 2005 upholding “the constitutional validity of these anti-cow slaughter laws.”
Accusing all BJP-ruled states in the so-called cow belt of going strict on cow slaughter after Modi become Prime Minister, the report shows, how the Haryana government’s “commitment to cow protection” particularly became “strong.”
“It has set up a 24-hour helpline for citizens to report cow slaughter and smuggling. It has also appointed police task forces to respond to the complaints, headed by a senior police officer”, the report, which is the result of fact finding investigation of lynchings and vigilante violence, conducted through July 2017, states.
“In the absence of official data”, the report states, it had to “rely on private sources” on lynching incidents, especially on the recently-created dataset –the Hate Tracker – on hate crime, defined by the source as “acts of violence, threats of violence, and incitements to violence based on religion, caste, race, ethnicity, region of origin, gender identity and sexual orientation”.
Based on content analysis of English media, the report says, it includes “the India Spend portal records 63 incidents of bovine-related attacks, over an eight year period (2010-2017, up to June 25), in which 28 persons died, and two were raped.”
“The attacks included mob lynching and violence by vigilante groups. Muslims were the target of 51 per cent of the violence, but comprised 86 per cent of those killed. Dalits were the target in 8 per cent of the attacks, Hindus 14 per cent, Sikhs 5, Christians 1”, the report says, adding, “In 20 per cent of cases, religion was not known, or not mentioned.”
“Notably, 97 per cent of these cow-terror attacks were reported after Modi’s BJP took power in the centre, in May 2014”, the report says, adding, “Just over half of the cases of cow-related violence – 32 of 63 incidents – were from states governed by BJP, when the attacks were reported.”
“Bovine related attacks are widely spread out across the country - reported from 19 of 29 Indian states, with Uttar Pradesh (10), Haryana (9), Jharkhand (6) Gujarat (6), Karnataka (6), Madhya Pradesh (4), Delhi (4) and Rajasthan (4) reporting the highest number of cases”, the report says.

Comments

TRENDING

How community leaders overcome obstacles to protect forests and pastures in remote villages

By Bharat Dogra  Dheera Ram Kapaya grew up in such poverty that, unable to attend school himself, he would carry another boy’s heavy school bag for five kilometers just to get a scoop of daliya (porridge). When he was finally able to attend school, he had to leave after class five to join other adolescent workers. However, as soon as opportunities arose, he involved himself in community efforts—promoting forest protection, adult literacy, and other constructive initiatives. His hidden talent for writing emerged during this time, and he became known for the songs and street play scripts he created to promote forest conservation, discourage child marriages, and support other social reforms.

Workers' groups condemn Gujarat Ordinance increasing working hours, warn of statewide agitation

By A Representative   At a consultation organised today by the Asangathit Shramik Hit Rakshak Manch at Circuit House in Ahmedabad, leaders of major trade unions and labour rights organisations strongly opposed the Gujarat government’s recent ordinance amending the Factories Act and the draft rules notified under the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Code, 2020. Around 50 representatives from central trade unions, independent unions, and labour welfare organisations participated in the meeting.

The GMO illusion: Three decades of hype, harm, and false hope

By Sridhar Radhakrishnan  Three decades of hype, billions of dollars spent, and still no miracle crop. It's time to abandon the GMO biotech fairy tale and return to the soil, the seed, and the farmer. “Trust us,” they said. “GMOs will feed the world.” Picture a world where there is plenty of food, no hunger, fields grow without chemical pesticides, children are saved from malnutrition, and people live healthily.

Deaths in Chhattisgarh are not just numbers – they mark a deeper democratic crisis

By Sunil Kumar  For a while, I had withdrawn into a quieter life, seeking solace in nature. But the rising tide of state-sponsored violence and recurring conflict across India has compelled deeper reflection. The recent incidents of killings in central India—particularly in Chhattisgarh—are not isolated acts. They point to a larger and ongoing crisis that concerns the health of democracy and the treatment of marginalised communities.

Sandra Gonzalez Sanabria: An inspiring life from Colombia’s Amazonian valley

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat*  In the village of Héctor Ramírez, known as Agua Bonita, in La Montañita, Caquetá, Colombia, a vision of peace and renewal is unfolding. In the pre-2016 period, this would have been nearly impossible for outsiders to visit, as it was the epicenter of violent resistance against state oppression. However, after the Peace Accord was signed between the Colombian government and former revolutionaries—marking the end of a 70-year insurgency that claimed over 400,000 lives until 2025, including civilians, rebel fighters, and security personnel—things began to change. Visiting Agua Bonita during the Global Land Forum in Bogotá revealed a village of hope and resilience. Former FARC revolutionaries have settled here and transformed the village into a center of peace and aspiration.

'Bengali Muslim migrant workers face crackdown in Gurgaon': Academic raises alarm

By A Representative   Political analyst and retired Delhi University professor Shamsul Islam has raised serious concerns over the ongoing targeting and detention of Muslim migrant workers from West Bengal in Gurgaon, Haryana. In a public statement, Islam described the situation as "brutal repression" and accused law enforcement agencies of detaining migrants arbitrarily under the pretext of verifying their citizenship.

Indigenous Karen activist calls for global solidarity amid continued struggles in Burma

By A Representative   At the International Festival for People’s Rights and Struggles (IFPRS), Naw Paw Pree, an Indigenous Karen activist from the Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG), shared her experiences of oppression, resilience, and hope. Organized with the support of the International Indigenous Peoples Movement for Self-Determination and Liberation (IPMSDL), the event brought together Indigenous and marginalized communities from across the globe, offering a rare safe space for shared learning, solidarity, and expression.

Gender violence defies stringent laws: The need for robust social capital

By Dr. Manoj Kumar Mishra*  The tragic death of Miss Soumyashree Bisi, a 20-year-old student from Fakir Mohan College, Balasore, who reportedly self-immolated due to harassment, shocked the conscience of Odisha. Even before the public could process this horrifying event, another harrowing case emerged—a 15-year-old girl from Balanga, Puri, was allegedly set ablaze by miscreants. These incidents are not isolated; they highlight a disturbing pattern of rising gender-based violence across the state and the country.

A matter of deep concern: The silent struggles of India's visually impaired women

By N.S. Venkataraman  Visual impairment is one of the most severe forms of physical disability that afflicts humanity, and its impact is even more acute when it affects women. The burden becomes overwhelming when visually impaired women also belong to economically weaker sections of society, with little or no financial or institutional support. Their struggle for dignity, survival, and identity is often invisible—hidden in plain sight across cities and rural corners alike. And yet, these women form a large, neglected segment of society not just in India, but around the world. In India, governmental assistance to visually impaired persons exists but remains minimal. While policies are framed with good intent, they often fall short in implementation. More importantly, no real distinction is made between the unique challenges faced by visually impaired men and women. This gender-blind approach to disability support overlooks the compounded social vulnerabilities that women face due to...