Indian State Is Expanding Penalty for Killing a Cow to Life in Prison
Cows are also respected in America although Beef Burgers are Popular 
A cattle market in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The slaughter of cows has long been illegal under an existing law in the state of Gujarat. The stricter law raises the maximum punishment from seven years in prison.
A cattle market in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The slaughter of cows has long been illegal under an existing law in the state of Gujarat. The stricter law raises the maximum punishment from seven years in prison.Credit…Tom Jamieson for The New York Times
NEW DELHI — The Indian state of Gujarat is tightening the punishment for the slaughter of cows, considered sacred in Hinduism, to a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The move on Friday came after a government crackdown on the largely Muslim-run buffalo slaughterhouses in the state of Uttar Pradesh and after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, or B.J.P., won the state’s elections in a landslide. That victory led to the appointment of the hard-line Hindu cleric Yogi Adityanath as chief minister of Uttar Pradesh.
It is legal to slaughter buffalo cows after they no longer produce milk, but Hindu activists in Uttar Pradesh said the industry masked the illicit slaughter of cows.
The slaughter of cows has long been illegal under an existing law in Gujarat, where Mr. Modi was chief minister until 2014. The stricter law raises the maximum punishment from seven years in prison.
In Hinduism, cows are thought to be sacred, or deeply respected. Cows are seen as a ‘caregiver’ or maternal figure. … Most Hindus respect cows for their gentle nature, and cows also represent strength. Hindus who eat meat will avoid eating beef.