Bishop Condemns Call to Execute People Who Slaughter Cattle

People in India protest "cow vigilantes," who are attacking people who butcher cows, which are considered sacred in Hinduism. AP

A Catholic bishop has condemned a call by a Hindu extremist group for the execution of people who slaughter cattle or transport beef.

According to Crux, Bishop Vincent Barwa, who chairs the office for ethnic minorities and lower-caste people of Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), said the call by the World Hindu Council sought to elicit violence, confusions and religious divisions.

The Hindu extremists had resolved to press for a national law against cow slaughter, demanding capital punishment for violators.

The death sentences for cow slaughter targeted Christians, Muslims, Dalits and indigenous groups who had no religious prohibition on the eating of beef.

Laws against cow slaughter exist in 20 of India's 29 states.