A court in Gujarat quoted the Manusmriti while sentencing three persons to life imprisonment in a cow slaughter case.
Additional Sessions Judge B R Rajput also imposed a fine of Rs 3 lakh on Vasim Qureshi, Mohammad Rafiq Qureshi and Asfaq Bahelim, who were reportedly held in possession of 277 kg of beef.
A PTI report quoted Judge Rajput as saying: “The cow is regarded as the ‘mother of the world’, serving as an abode for 33 crore deities. Her four legs are symbolic of the four Vedas."
The court also said that Manu had entrusted the 'Vaishya' (a class in the Vedic social order) with the protection of cattle. Manusmriti or the laws of Manu is an ancient Hindu text that lays down guidelines for how people should live, behave, and organise society.
"Furthermore, in the context of ‘Arsha Vivaha’ (a traditional form of Vedic marriage), the pair -- a cow and a bull -- holds special significance,” the judge said.
According to the prosecution, six were arrested with the seized quantity of beef and weapons allegedly used to slaughter cows in August 2024.
The prosecution said a father-son duo would purchase weak or non-lactating buffaloes. It claimed that the duo brought four individuals from Ahmedabad to their home and had the animals slaughtered.
Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi celebrated the verdict and called it "a clear message that the law will never spare those who commit cow slaughter in Gujarat".
The Gujarat government made cow slaughter punishable through a 2017 amendment to the Gujarat Animal Preservation Act, 1954.
In June this year, the Gujarat High Court denied bail to a man accused of illegal cow slaughter, saying the animal was sacred in the country.