RSS ideologue Vaidya backs PM: 'difficult to say there is no wrongdoing in name of cow protection'

At a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is facing the wrath of 'sants' and 'mahants' for dubbing 'gau rakshaks' (cow protectors) as "bogus", Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) ideologue and former spokesperson M.G. Vaidya on Friday backed him solidly, saying it is difficult to say there is no wrongdoing in the name of cow protection as what they have done in Gujarat's Una, no cow protector will accept that.

"It is difficult to say there is no wrongdoing in the name of cow protection. What they have done in Una, Gujarat, no cow protector will accept that, because they assaulted Dalits by taking law in their hands, this is wrong. Taking law into your hands and punishing anybody by becoming police is wrong." Vaidya told ANI.

"Everybody has right to put forward his views, but some people may get angry. The Prime Minister has said 80 percent of gau rakshaks are bogus. There could be difference over percentage, but it's not that all gau rakshaks are doing good work in the name of cow protection," he added.

When asked sants and mahants, including the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) would be holding a meeting on August 22 to chalk out a strategy against Prime Minister Modi, Vaidya, "Their anger is natural as the Prime Minister has referred 70-80 percent as bogus, they thought it was an attack on cow protection and that is why they are meeting. We can offer a comment only after we know what they have decided at their meeting."

Elaborating on his statement, he said, "But, we have heard two statements by very responsible people. Some people said only a handful of cow protectors are bogus, while the Prime Minister said it was 80 percent, thus, there could be a difference of opinion. What do sants and mahants think, we should also look into that."

"But, one thing is clear," said the RSS ideologue, "places where cow slaughter is banned, you can lodge a complaint with police if you find something wrong or have some doubt and if the government fails to take action, you can launch a campaign against it. But, that should be peaceful. Taking law into your hands and punishing anybody by becoming police is wrong.