Holy cow, unholy sentence

An additional sessions court at Kalol in Gandhinagar district of Gujarat sentenced three men—Wasim, Mohammed Rafiq and Ashfaq—to rigorous imprisonment for life following the seizure of 277 kilograms of beef from a village house in Jamla. Judge Brijeshkumari Rameshwarsinh Rajput delivered the order under the Gujarat Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act, 2017, which permits sentences ranging from ten years to life imprisonment for cow slaughter. The court dismissed defense pleas regarding the young age, lack of prior convictions, and family responsibilities of the accused, citing theological texts including the Rigveda, Manusmriti and Harivamsa Purana to justify the maximum penalty and stating that without life sentences, “Gau Mata will become extinct from the earth.”