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The Bombay High Court on Monday refused to grant any relief to beef traders, and urged them not to make it "a religious or a prestige issue."

People demonstrate against cow slaughter. File photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

“Since the law has come into effect now the authorities are duty bound to take action if slaughter is carried out. Please do not make this a religious and prestige issue,” Justice V M Kanade said here on Monday. The court was hearing an application filed by a beef dealers’ association, which has challenged the ban on beef sale.

Bombay Suburban Beef Dealers’ Welfare Association had said that the new law -- Maharashtra Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act, which bans slaughter of bullocks and bulls, cannot be enforced till it is not notified in the official gazette.

But the Union Government on Monday told the court that a notification had already been issued in the government gazette. The government counsel also produced a copy of the gazette. The court thereafter refused to interfere in the matter, and said the authorities were bound to implement the new law.

The beef traders have sought to intervene in a petition filed by the Bhartiya Gauvansh Rakshan Sanvardhan Parishad. The petition seeks enforcement of the new law.

During the last hearing, the Bombay High Court had directed the Mumbai Police Commissioner and the Municipal Commissioner to make sure that the slaughter of bulls and bullocks is stopped at the Deonar abbatoir. The petitioners have sought the implementation of new law across all the slaughter houses of the State.

Cow slaughter issue a ploy: Karat

Accusing the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and other Hindutva forces of fanning communal hatred in the country, Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Prakash Karat said here on Sunday that the issue of cow slaughter was being raised to target minorities.

CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat addressing a public rally in Kolkata on Sunday. Photo: Sushanta Patronobish

“Ever since the government led by the BJP came to power, the RSS and other Hindutva forces are fanning the communal fire. The attacks on minorities are on the rise, the issue of cow slaughter is raised to target the minorities and in some places, there are also forced religious conversions,” he said while addressing a massive CPI(M) rally in the city.

Another senior CPI(M) leader and Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechury said: “To prevent the people’s discontent against the BJP-led government at the Centre from turning into a mass movement, they [BJP] have started a communal jihad and raised the slogan of ghar vapsi [homecoming],” he said.

The CPI(M) leader took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi poll slogan of ‘achhe din aane wale hain’ (good days are to come). “The good days are only for the capitalists and the corporates. Ghar vapsi where people are forcibly converted is continuing. But Modiji was talking about dhan vapsi [return of money] during the polls, but we haven’t seen a single step by this government to bring back the black money,” he added.

Both CPI(M) leaders attacked the Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal on the issue of corruption. “This is not a Trinamool government but a ghotala [scam] Congress,” Mr. Karat said.

Mr. Yechury alleged that every other day a new scam surfaced in the State. Mr. Karat blamed the Trinamool for letting the BJP make inroads into West Bengal.