Read Time: 13 minutes

Observing that, "The cow and its progeny hold a special place in Indian ethos, with cows being considered akin to a mother herself," the Allahabad High Court has denied bail to a man charged for the theft and illegal slaughter of a cow. Amongst other significant observations, the court also remarked that "cow should be declared the national animal and cow protection should be declared to be a fundamental right of Hindus", in light of the essentiality it holds in Hinduism.

Considering that cow protection has been embedded in Indian ethos and that "even during the Constitutional Assembly Debates the issue of making cow protection a fundamental right had been raised, and that the fact that Hindus worship cows has been respected by major Non-Hindu leaders as well, since time immemorial," the single judge bench of Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav hearing the matter further said that it is for the government to bring a Bill in the Parliament including protection of cow and its progeny in the Fundamental Rights, and declaring cow as the national animal. 

Facts

The complainant, one Khilendra Singh, alleged that his 5-year-old cow was stolen by unknown persons in the middle of the night in February this year. In the morning, on finding his cow missing he went to search for her and found her body in a jungle.

He recognized her by seeing her head, which was now severed from her body. She had been slaughtered there along with 2 other cattle, whose bodies the complainant also saw at the spot.

The accused persons Chhote, Javed, Shoaib, Arkaan and Rehaan were seen at the spot alongwith 2 or 3 other persons, by a witness, slaughtering the cattle and collecting their meat.

Thereafter, an FIR was registered under S. 379 IPC r/w S. 3, 5, 8 UP Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, 1955.

One of the accused persons, Javed, prayed for bail on the grounds that he has been falsely implicated in the case and has been in custody since Mar 8, 2021. He stated that he was not present on the spot, and that no meat or cow was found in his possession.

The State on the other hand argued that Javed has not been falsely implicated and that charges against him are absolutely true and that he had been identified in torch light by witnesses at the spot, alongwith other known and unknown accused persons.

The State also submitted that situation in the village was found to be tense since news of the slaughter had spread and that the Government Veterinary Doctor's report showed that the meat was that of cattle's.

The State counsel also vehemently argued that with cow slaughter being completely banned in the state, and there being eye-witnesses to the event of cow slaughter by the accused, Javed, there was no question of bail being granted at this stage.

Court’s Observations

Noting that fundamental rights are not only the privilege of those who consume or want to consume beef, the court said, "Fundamental rights do not just belong to those who consume or want to consume beef, it is also the right of those who worship cattle or depend on them for their livelihood to be able to live holistically."

The court said that keeping this in view, there are several states that have implemented a law prohibiting cow slaughter, including the state of Uttar Pradesh.

On the question of right to food, the court stated, "someone's right to life cannot be snatched away merely for another's pleasures of taste, and that the right to life supercedes the right to kill. The right to consume cow-beef can never be a Fundamental Right."

It was specifically noted that cow and its progeny have had a special place in Indian scriptures including the Vedas, the Puranas, the Shastras, Mahabharata, and Ramayana, and that Non-Hindu rulers and leaders have also respected this.

Other significant remarks as follows:

• The country will be safe, only when there would be welfare of cows, and then only, the country would prosper.
• There are hundreds of examples in our country that whenever we have forgone our "sanskriti", foreigners have been able attack and enslave us and that if even today we do not wake up, we should not forget the autocratic Taliban invasion and occupation of Afghanistan.

Highlighting the stature that cows hold in Bharatiya culture, the court said:

• It is not that only Hindus have understood the importance of cows, Non-Hindu leaders too have accepted the cow as an important part of India's culture during their reign. For instance, slaughter of cows was banned by 5 Muslim rulers including Babur, Humayun, Akbar, Nawab of Mysore and Hyder Ali who made cow slaughter a punishable offence.
• Punjab Kesari Maharaja Ranjeet Singh also made cow slaughter a crime punishable with death, the court pointed out.
• Amongst non-Hindu leaders in Mughal era who raised their voices against cow slaughter, the court named Maulana Mohammad Ali, Shuakat Ali, Hakim Ajmal Khan, Maulana Abdul Hussain etc.
• The bench referred to Swami Dayanand Saraswati's famous quote about the importance of cow and its progeny, wherein he had stated that while in its lifetime a cow feeds nearly 410-440 people, with her meat only about 80 people can be fed once.

Further referring to Mangal Pandey's revolt against the Britishers, which was sparked after the presence of beef was found in cartridges, the court said, "History bears witness that whenever cow and its progeny have been attacked, united voices have risen up against it."

Importantly, the court stated that "someone's right to life cannot be snatched away merely for another's pleasures of taste, and that the right to life supercedes the right to kill." The court emphasized that, "the right to consume cow-beef can never be a Fundamental Right".

In light of the facts and observations, and taking note that this was not the first instance where the applicant Javed had committed cow slaughter and disturbed the harmony of the society, the court refused to release him on bail.

"Jab gaay ka kalyaan hoga, tabhi Desh ka kalyaan hoga (only if cow is revered, the country will prosper)," the bail order said.

Case Title: Javed vs. State of UP