Deaths raise fresh fears over cow vigilantism in India

The cow is worshipped by millions of Hindus, who are the majority of India’s population. While cow slaughter was already a sensitive topic and banned in some states, it has become a hotly debated issue since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power nationally in 2014.

The BJP-led state governments have cracked down heavily on cow slaughter. Sale and consumption of beef is now illegal in about two-thirds of India’s 28 states, most of them governed by the BJP, including Haryana. Cow vigilante groups have been accused of enforcing this ban through violence, often leading to assaults and even lynchings of mostly Muslim meat sellers and cattle traders.

Read more: BBC News