Cattle protection-related violence

In India, where cows are venerated by a large segment of the population, cow vigilante violence involving mob attacks in the name of "cow protection," but targeting mostly Muslims, has swelled since 2014. Cattle slaughter is banned in most states of India, Recently emerged cow vigilante groups, claiming to be protecting cattle, have accused some Indian Muslims and Dalits of cattle theft or slaughter, and targeted violence against them, leading to a number of deaths. Cow-protection groups see themselves as preventing theft, protecting the cow or upholding the law in an Indian state which bans cow slaughter.

There has been a rise in the number of incidents of cow vigilantism since the election of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to the Indian central government in 2014. The frequency and severity of cow vigilante violence has been described as "unprecedented".Human Rights Watch has reported that there has been a surge in cow vigilante violence since 2015. The surge is attributed to the recent rise in Hindu nationalism in India. Many vigilante groups say they feel "empowered" by the victory of the Hindu nationalist BJP in the 2014 election. However, in a major setback for cow vigilantism, Supreme Court of India in September 2017 ruled that each state should appoint a police officer in each district as a nodal officer to take strict action against cow vigilantism.

The BJP has run the Indian federal government since its election in 2014. Following Narendra Modi's rise to power, extremist Hindu groups have led attacks across the country that have targeted Muslim and Dalit communities. These attacks have been carried out with the stated intention of protecting cows. Dalit groups are particularly vulnerable to such attacks, as they are frequently responsible for disposing cattle carcasses and skins. The perpetrators of these attacks, described as "vigilantism" by Human Rights Watch, have stated that they are protecting the rights of Hindus, and that the police do not adequately deal with cow slaughter. Scholar Radha Sarkar has argued that "cow vigilantism itself is not new in India, and violence over the protection of cows has occurred in the past. However, the frequency, impunity, and flagrance of the current instances of cow-related violence are unprecedented." In 2015 Business Insider reported that vigilante attacks on trucks carrying cattle had increased in Maharastra. In 2017, Bloomberg reported that according to the meat industry representatives, cow vigilantes have been stopping vehicles, extorting money and stealing valuable livestock. Cow vigilante activity also increased during the run up to Bihar Legislative Assembly election, 2015. BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi said the election was "a fight between those who eat beef and those who are against cow slaughter".The Economist argued in 2016 that cow vigilantism can sometimes be a profitable business. It pointed to an Indian Express investigation that found that vigilantes in Punjab charge cattle transporters 200 rupees ($3) per cow in exchange for not harassing their trucks.

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