Berkeley University study of Islamophobia in India highlights plight of Muslims
Modi’s Cash Cows
2017 investigative report by Reuters uncovered how ‘Cow protection’ turned out to be lucrative
for the BJP party. The report offered the “first in-depth look at how the actions of cow vigilantes are also leading to further economic marginalization of the country’s Muslim minority.” It uncovered that Hindu nationalist gau rakshaks seize cows after they stop and beat farmers that transport them, as in Pehlu Khan’s case. The gau rakshaks steal the cows from the farmers, who are generally Muslim or Dalit, and then redistribute their wealth in the form of a cow, through BJP led gaushalas (cow shelters) where “the stolen cows are being given to Hindu farmers.”
The investigative report further revealed that “states governed by Modi’s party have seen a marked increase in cow theft from Muslims as well as funding for cow shelters that in many cases take in the stolen cattle.”337 The report estimates that in northern India 190,000 cows have been seized since the election of Prime Minister Modi to office in 2014. Some of the property seizures reportedly occurred in the presence of police and “almost every single one of them from Muslims.”338 A Reuters investigative report entitled “In Modi’s India, Cow Vigilantes Deny Muslim Farmers Their Livelihood” surveyed 110 cow shelters led by BJP chief ministers throughout six states prior to or just after the election in 2014.339 The report claimed that there was an increase in cattle holdings from 84,000 (2014) to 126,000 (2017) although these number only represent a small amount of shelters in the country.340 According to the report, “of the 110 cattle facilities surveyed, all but 14 said they receive cows from the Hindu vigilante groups. About a third said they sell or give cows away, nearly all to Hindu farmers and households.”341 In comparison, the report uncovered that only three of 24 non-BJP ruled facilities stated that “they sold or gave away cattle - mainly to Hindus - after receiving them.”
Although the report clarifies that it is difficult to evaluate, it estimates that of 190,000 cows taken by BJP groups in northern India ranging in value between 0 to 25,000 rupees ($385) depending on the cow, the amount of loss equates to more than $36 million. Add to that the fact that some families also make a living by selling the milk that the animals provide, such as lynching victim Pehlu Khan and his family. Thirty-six million dollars is a significant amount of monetary loss in a nation with extreme poverty and where Muslims are among those with the lowest income statistically.
Additionally in March 2017, three Muslim owned butcher shops were razed in Uttar Pradesh, a predominantly Hindu state led by Hindutva extremist Yogi Adityanath. Adityanath is “known for his polarizing and inflammatory speeches against Muslims, and has railed for harsher penalties for the slaughter of cows.” Since his election reportedly “dozens of butcher shops deemed illegal by the government have been sealed off across the state.” Uttar Pradesh has topped the charts for communal violence three years in a row. In 2018 it witnessed 195 cases of communal violence. With ten reported incidents of cow related violence from 2010-2017 according to IndiaSpend data, Uttar Pradesh shared the lead position for cow vigilantism with Haryana.
Cow Related Violence
Cow related violence at the hands of vigilantes (gau rakshaks) who take the law into their own hands in the name of ‘cow protection’ is among the leading recorded source of violence against Muslims in India. It has increased annually since Prime Minister Modi took office in 2014 and 2017 was its highest number of recorded incidents yet. IndiaSpend revealed that according to their data recorded up until June 25, 2017:
As many of 97 percent of these attacks were reported after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government came to power in May 2014, and half the cow-related violence–30 of 60 cases–were from states governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) when the attacks were reported.
In 2018, IndiaSpend recorded 31 incidents of cow-related violence involving 57 victims, of which 29 were identified as Muslim.291 The data further reveals that “Muslims were the target of 52 percent of violence centered on bovine issues over nearly eight years (2010 to 2017) and comprised 84 percent of 25 Indians killed in 60 incidents.”292 Reportedly the majority of the attacks (52 percent) “were based on rumours.”
The lynchings of two unrelated Muslims, Pehlu Khan, and Junaid Khan are important cases that garnered global attention in 2017 and propelled conversations, advocacy and legislation forward around lynching and cow vigilantism.
Read report on Islamophobia in India
The Journal of America Team:
Editor in chief:
Abdus Sattar Ghazali
Senior Editor:
Prof. Arthur Scott
Special Correspondent
Maryam Turab
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