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India’s ban on cow slaughter: appeasing the BJP Hindu base but scoring an economic own goal?

While India’s ban on selling cattle for slaughter has triggered violent vigilantism, Peter Mayer and Mandar Oak consider its impact on the country’s economy It is common knowledge that the cow is held as sacred by many Hindus. As the English usage is ambiguous, it is important to specify that it is only females of […]

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Safety of cows, sacrifice of minorities: cow vigilantism in India

In a new regime that protects the welfare of cattle, the Indian government overlooks the safety and livelihood of its minorities, argues Pawan Singh Restrictions on buying and selling cows and other cattle in open livestock markets in India began in May 2017 when the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change implemented the Supreme

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Jayalalithaa: death of a political mother goddess

India’s most populous state, Tamil Nadu, faces uncertain political times following the death of its charismatic chief minister, Jayalalitha, writes Peter Mayer The unexpected death of J Jayalalithaa1, five-time chief minister of India’s populous Tamil Nadu state, evoked an eruption of mass grief. Four hundred and seventy people are reported to have died of shock

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‘Sacred cows’ fuel India’s booming beef industry

India’s cow protection policies have little to do with animal rights or ethics Most Indian states criminalise the slaughter of the cow, bull and progeny, and beef sourced from them, based on a core Hindu ethic of reverencing the cow as sacred. The blind spot in the politics and legislation of India’s cow protectionism, however,

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