Gujarat to Now Award Life Sentences for Cow Slaughter: CM

Vijay Rupani wants to penalise those accused of killing cows with a Rs 50,000 fine and jail terms up to seven years.

(Picture Courtesy: Reuters)

The Gujarat government will enact a harsher law, providing for life terms for those found involved in cow-slaughtering and transportation of beef, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said on 12 March.

Addressing a gathering at Swaminarayan Gurukul in Vanthali town of Junagadh district, Rupani said the BJP government had earlier brought the law in 2011 to save cows.

We fought the case till the Supreme Court to bring a law in Gujarat to save cows. Now, we want to make this law more strict, for which we will introduce a Bill in the ongoing Budget session of the Gujarat assembly during next week.

Vijay Rupani, Chief Minister

With Narendra Modi as the state chief minister, the Gujarat government had in 2011 imposed a complete ban on cow-slaughter, transportation and selling of beef by amending the erstwhile Gujarat Animal Preservation Act of 1954.

Since then, the crimes related to cow slaughter in Gujarat have been covered under the Gujarat Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act of 2011.

Under this Act, the people found involved in cow-slaughter and related crimes are penalised with a Rs 50,000 fine and a jail term of up to seven years.

Rupani now has announced the intention to make the present Act more stringent with harsher punishment.

In the Bill, we will make a provision wherein people found involved in cow-slaughtering as well transportation of beef will be punished with life imprisonment. Their vehicles too will be seized permanently.

Vijay Rupani, Chief Minister