Bhagwat pitches for cow protection but disapproves violence

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat Wednesday pitched for protection of cows but disapproved of going against law in the name of such vigilantism.

The Sangh head also said, "We have to reject the double-speak as there is no talk of violence by cow smugglers." He was replying to questions on cow vigilantism and mob lynching.

It is a crime to take law in one's own hands, Bhagwat said on cow vigilantism and asserted there should be stringent punishment in such cases.

The question came in the backdrop of instances of alleged lynching by cow vigilantes in several states.