Gau-politics is back in Karnataka as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to reintroduce the cow slaughter bill following the return of BS Yediyurappa as the chief minister. Speculation over the bill getting a second life mounted after former union minister Basanagouda Patil Yatnal petitioned the chief minister on Wednesday, August 21, in this regard.
Yatnal has asked the CM to pass the bill banning slaughter of cows and invoke strict rules against cattle trade in the state. He has also demanded protection to gau rakshas (cow protectors).
Earlier in June, BJP leader Kota Srinivas Poojary had also demanded the reintroduction of the bill after Congress leader UT Khader urged the Union government to enforce a total ban on cow slaughter.
Speculation is rife that the BJP government, headed by Yediyurappa, will reintroduce Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, 2010. It was passed by the Karnataka Legislative Assembly in March 2010 by the BJP but was later revoked by the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government.
The Act prohibits the slaughter of cows and aims at preservation and improvement of the breeds of cattle. It also aims to organise agriculture and animal husbandry according to Article 48 of the Constitution of India. The governor has forwarded the bill to the President of India.
The ban on cow slaughter, proposed by the saffron party, replaced the previous Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act of 1964. The BJP had imposed an outright prohibition over the cattle trade and slaughter by imposing very strict rules and hefty amounts as penalty over the illegal trade.
However, Siddaramiah government killed the bill imposing a blanket ban and restored the previous Act of 1964, which permitted people to slaughter bulls and buffaloes if they were unfit for breeding, not giving milk or above 12 years of age.
