After five people were caught slaughtering cow and buffalo calves inside a vehicle parked along a road in Dindoshi, Goregaon, on Tuesday morning, Hindu groups called for more stringent animal slaughter laws in the state.
While killing of cows and their progeny is prohibited in the state, licences are needed for slaughtering buffaloes. Dindoshi police said they received a message at 7.00am about animals being slaughtered inside a tempo near Oberoi Mall, Goregaon East. At the site, police found a white mini truck with closed doors parked at the side of the road.
Dindoshi police station registered FIR against five residents of Dindoshi for violating sections 325, 3 (5) of the Bharatiya Nyay Samhita 2023 for maiming animals and common intent. The accused were also charged under the Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act, 1995, which bans cow slaughter, and the Motor Vehicles Act. The accused and the tempo are in police custody.
The complainant in the case, sub-inspector Suryakant Chavan, said the accused did not have any licence for the slaughter of the buffaloes. When the police asked the tempo driver and four other people about the source of the meat, they said that they had brought it from Vasai to sell it. However, eye witnesses said the animals were being slaughtered inside the vehicle. The tempo and meat was seized after the panchnama and sent to the municipal slaughter house, Deonar.
Activists said that incidents of illegal animal slaughter have been rising in the city. Ramnik Gupta, goraksha pramukh, Hindu Vahini, said that the current laws are not a deterrent to animal smugglers. "They are released on bail after a few days and the fines are insignificant," said Gupta.
Yogesh Bobhate, pradesh adhyaksh, Maharashtra, Hindu Vahini, said, "The audacity of the cow smugglers has increased to the extent that they are slaughtering live cattle in tempos. We just want to ask the government, "What is going on?"," said.
On Saturday, the Naigaon police station, Vasai-Virar, arrested a resident of Patan, Gujarat, for transporting six buffaloes in cramped conditions in a mini truck. The accused has been charged under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, and Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act.
