Protestors challenge cow rakshaks by openly eating beef in Chennai

Attack on IIT's PhD scholar by students allegedly affiliated with Right wing bodies led to protest

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras on Wednesday witnessed protests against the attack on an institution's research scholar who participated in the beef fest on the campus on Sunday. A group of protestors challenged cow rakshaks (vigilantes) by openly eating beef during the protest.

Various students of Revolutionary Student Youth Front (RSYF), Students Federation of India (SFI), Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle (APSC), and activists of Thanthai Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam (TPDK) protested near IIT-Madras gate against attack on an IIT Madras research scholar by some Right wing students for participating in beef fest.

Sooraj R- a PhD scholar and a member of Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle (APSC) was allegedly attacked on Tuesday by some students, who are allegedly affiliated with Right wing student bodies.

However, the police detained the protestors before they could enter the Campus.

While other student bodies raised slogans against Narendra Modi led Union Government's order and demanded arrest of the students who allegedly attacked Sooraj, activists of the TPDK went a step ahead and openly ate beef during the protest.

A TPDK protestor told ANI that "Students wings affiliated with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) have brutally beaten one of the students of this institution. We condemn this dastardly act. The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) is indulging in terrorist act and the attackers must be booked under Goonda act."

He added that 'beef eating act' was a way to put forward their demand.

"Eating beef is tradition of Tamil people and nobody can change this. Therefore, we demand the revocation of Centre's ruling on the sale of cattle ban."

Other protestor alleged that the police were unleashing violence against the protestors.

"Police have unleashed violence against protesters. They are beating us mercilessly. Is this a democracy? Do we not have right to speak, right to protest?

He also equated drinking cow urine practice with the practice of beef eating in Tamil Nadu.

"With regard to consumption of beef, as the union government headed by BJP believes in drinking of urine, in the same lines, slaughtering cow and eating its beef is our tradition. We may eat beef or we eat something else, who are these people to stop or question us?"

One of the RSYF placards read: "This is Jallikattu part 2: We will take the cow rakshaks by their horns".

There have been protests in Tamil Nadu and neighbouring states like Kerala and Karnataka against the Centre's order.

According to the notification under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act of 1960 that gives the Centre powers over animal welfare, the committees overseeing animal markets will have to take an undertaking from traders that "animals are bought for agriculture purposes and not for slaughter".