In India, Cows are respected equivalent to mothers. They hold more respect because of religious views in Hindu Religious books. We Indians strongly believe that worshipping a cow gives more virtue than worshipping many Gods. Apart from that, we take many benefits from the Cows. They help & basically nurture each Human in one way or the other.

And, because of the aforesaid reasons, cows will always hold a special position in the hearts of all the Indians. But, there is a problem which is Cow slaughtering. 

Cattle slaughter, especially cow slaughter, is a controversial topic in India because of cattle's traditional status as an endeared and respected living being to adherents of Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism, and Buddhism. while being considered an acceptable source of meat by Muslims and Christians as well as adherents of other non-Dharmic Religions in India.

More specifically, the cow's slaughter has been shunned because of a number of reasons such as being associated with the god Krishna in Hinduism, cattle being respected as an integral part of rural livelihoods, and an economic necessity. Cattle slaughter has also been opposed by various Indian religions because of the ethical principle of non-violence and the belief in the unity of all life. Legislation against cattle slaughter is in place throughout most states of India except Kerala, Goa, West Bengal, and the states of Northeast India.

On 26 October 2005, the Supreme Court of India, in a landmark judgment upheld the constitutional validity of anti-cow slaughter laws enacted by different state governments in India. 20 out of 28 states in India had various laws regulating acts of slaughtered cows, prohibiting the slaughter or sale of cows. Arunachal, Goa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland, Tripura, and West Bengal are the states where there are no restrictions on cow slaughter.

Indian religions

There are many contradictions between the views of Non-Indians and Indians on Vegetarianism. The Myth of the Holy Cow, for example, cattle including cows were neither inviolable nor revered in the ancient times as they were later but he had not given any proofs from the Vedas. According to Marvin Harris, the Vedic literature is contradictory, with some suggesting ritual slaughter and meat consumption, while others suggesting a taboo on meat-eating.

The protection of animal life was championed by Jainism, on the grounds that violence against life forms is a source of suffering in the universe and a human being creates bad karma by violence against any living being.

Mughal Empire

Cattle slaughter, in accordance with the Islamic custom, was practiced in the Mughal Empire under its Sunni rulers. Despite cow slaughter not being a crime. The Mughal emperor Humayun stopped eating beef after the killing of cows in a Hindu territory by his soldiers led to clashes. Third Mughal emperor, Akbar, prohibited the slaughter of cows in several parts of his kingdom. The prohibition, meant as a gesture of goodwill towards Hindu subjects also carried stringent punishment for violators and continued down to Shah Jahan's reign.

Recently there was a case, where the person who was caught for the crime of cow slaughtering was actually innocent. But, only on the basis of doubt, he was troubled, which the High Court, later on, gave the judgment that the person was not guilty. Hence, the charge was removed.

In my opinion, the non-guilty must not be punished. But, the one who has committed the crime of Cow slaughtering must be punished for sure.

Cattle, especially Cows mean a lot for all the Indians because of the afore mention reasons. As discussed above cows need protection from slaughters. There are NGOs that work for Cow’s protection. They collect Donations for various purposes regarding Cows. Such as:-

1. For Cows Feed arrangements

2. For Cows Sheltering

3. For Self Reliance

4. For Cows protection.

5. To spread awareness about Cow’s importance & Humanity.

6. To adopt the disowned Cows & give it to someone who wants to do Gauseva to gain Virtue.