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Candidate Narendra Modi had raised questions about the 'pink revolution' in India while on the campaign trail, accusing Congress-led governments of promoting beef slaughter. Now his Minister for Women and Child Welfare, Maneka Gandhi has taken it one step further with her theory of 'pink terror', claiming that illegal animal slaughter is funding terrorism and bomb making.
“Slaughter of milking animals is a trade of Indians. Money through trade of slaughtered animals goes into terrorism and therefore into killing us. Why are we allowing this?” she said, according to the Indian Express, adding, “India is killing more animals than even China. Milking animals are being slaughtered and illegally traded to Bangladesh and the Middle East. It is no longer about religion but money,” she said.
The minister attempted to play down the 'communal angle, saying, "A slaughterer could be a Muslim but the transporter and the owners of the cows are often Hindus and non-Muslims. So it is not about religion but about trade and greed for money," according to a Times of India report.
Gandhi, a long-time animal rights activist, was speaking at the India for Animals conference where she said that the inference had been drawn from a report submitted to the Uttar Pradesh Police four years ago.
She also pointed out that India was illegally exporting beef to Bangladesh and the neighbouring country claimed to be exporting about 160,000 tonnes of beef. "But as a matter of fact they (Bangladesh) do not own a single cow," she said.
The Minister called on NGOs, volunteers and civil society to join the 'save animals movement' and urged them to set up informer systems to sound an alarm to prevent such trade.
While the minister's statement isn't entirely surprising given her strong stance on animal rights' issues, the sudden interest in beef export is bound to spark speculation. The issue has been a crucial one for the BJP, one that Modi had announced he would tackle if he came to power.
"Due to the pink revolution, they (Congress and UPA) have given subsidies to slaughterhouses and put a lot of investment. Due to this, the farmers are selling their cattle. This will have big ramification over the village economy. The pink revolution is going to destroy villages. This revolution of Congress and UPA is designed to finish farmers," Modi had said on the campaign trail.
Gandhi's sudden interest also comes soon after son Varun Gandhi was sidelined in the party. There were multiple theories on his demotion: his mother is already in the cabinet and the party didn't want to be seen extending favours to one family; Maneka's statement on how Varun would make for a great Uttar Pradesh chief minister was poorly received by higher ups; and of course, the widely rumoured distance between Varun and Modi himself.
While Gandhi may have just been at her vitriolic best on her pet subject of animal slaughter, it likely doesn't hurt that her views dovetail neatly with that of the PM.
And though Gandhi was quick to absolve any particular community of blame, it certainly comes close to flirting with the Hindutva agenda -- which was once warmly embraced by her own son. And while the minister may have escaped censure due to her caveat, it won't be entirely surprising if fringe elements use her statements for their own ends in the future.
“Slaughter of milking animals is a trade of Indians. Money through trade of slaughtered animals goes into terrorism and therefore into killing us. Why are we allowing this?” she said, according to the Indian Express, adding, “India is killing more animals than even China. Milking animals are being slaughtered and illegally traded to Bangladesh and the Middle East. It is no longer about religion but money,” she said.
The minister attempted to play down the 'communal angle, saying, "A slaughterer could be a Muslim but the transporter and the owners of the cows are often Hindus and non-Muslims. So it is not about religion but about trade and greed for money," according to a Times of India report.
Gandhi, a long-time animal rights activist, was speaking at the India for Animals conference where she said that the inference had been drawn from a report submitted to the Uttar Pradesh Police four years ago.
She also pointed out that India was illegally exporting beef to Bangladesh and the neighbouring country claimed to be exporting about 160,000 tonnes of beef. "But as a matter of fact they (Bangladesh) do not own a single cow," she said.
The Minister called on NGOs, volunteers and civil society to join the 'save animals movement' and urged them to set up informer systems to sound an alarm to prevent such trade.
While the minister's statement isn't entirely surprising given her strong stance on animal rights' issues, the sudden interest in beef export is bound to spark speculation. The issue has been a crucial one for the BJP, one that Modi had announced he would tackle if he came to power.
"Due to the pink revolution, they (Congress and UPA) have given subsidies to slaughterhouses and put a lot of investment. Due to this, the farmers are selling their cattle. This will have big ramification over the village economy. The pink revolution is going to destroy villages. This revolution of Congress and UPA is designed to finish farmers," Modi had said on the campaign trail.
Gandhi's sudden interest also comes soon after son Varun Gandhi was sidelined in the party. There were multiple theories on his demotion: his mother is already in the cabinet and the party didn't want to be seen extending favours to one family; Maneka's statement on how Varun would make for a great Uttar Pradesh chief minister was poorly received by higher ups; and of course, the widely rumoured distance between Varun and Modi himself.
While Gandhi may have just been at her vitriolic best on her pet subject of animal slaughter, it likely doesn't hurt that her views dovetail neatly with that of the PM.
And though Gandhi was quick to absolve any particular community of blame, it certainly comes close to flirting with the Hindutva agenda -- which was once warmly embraced by her own son. And while the minister may have escaped censure due to her caveat, it won't be entirely surprising if fringe elements use her statements for their own ends in the future.
