Rajasthan Haj Welfare Society backs demand to declare cow as national animal

Amid the growing demand from Islamic organisations to declare the cow as the “national animal”, members of Rajasthan Haj Welfare Society on Thursday took out a march in support of the idea.

Sheikh Haji Nizamuddin, General Secretary, Rajasthan Haj Welfare Society, said, “Quran emphasises brotherhood and love, and we are handling these matters in accordance with those teachings.”

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He said that incidents of mob lynching over alleged incidents of cow slaughter have disturbed the peace in many parts of the country.

“Keeping in mind that communal harmony should not be affected and the environment should not be disturbed further, we have decided to demand that the cow be declared the national animal of India,” he said.

Earlier this month, Arshad Madani, President of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, had also made a similar demand, urging the government to grant the status of national animal to cows.

“The cow should be granted the status of the ‘”national animal’”. The majority of the people in the country not only consider the cow sacred, but also accord it the status of a mother. In such a situation, it is difficult to understand what political compulsion is preventing the government from declaring it the ‘”national animal’”?” Madani said.

He said that the politics of hatred and mob lynching in the name of cow now must come to an end.

“We would, in fact, welcome the decision if the cow were declared the ‘‘national animal’’ and a permanent solution to this issue were found, so that no human life is lost and religion is not exploited for political purposes,” he added.