Ensure strict action against cow vigilantes: Mayawati to PM

New Delhi, Aug 10: BSP chief Mayawati today asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure "strict action" against those indulging in attack against Dalits in the name of cow protection and not just show sympathy.

"Recently, atrocities were committed against two Dalits in Andhra Pradesh and they are in very serious condition," Mayawati told reporters outside Parliament.

"I want to tell the Centre, particularly the Prime Minister, that on the issue of attacks against Dalits, the government should not just show sympathy towards Dalits. There is a need for strict action against those involved in these cases," the BSP supremo said.

A group of 'gau rakshaks' allegedly beat up two Dalits in East Godavari district on Tuesday for skinning a cow which had died due to electrocution, according to police. The incident took place at Janakipeta in Amalapuram town of the district in Andhra Pradesh.

According to police, after the cow died following electrocution, its owner, a farmer, engaged the two Dalit brothers for skinning the animal before it was buried.

Modi had on Saturday slammed 'gau rakshaks' or cow vigilantes and termed as outrageous incidents like the flogging of four Dalits in Gujarat last month. Most of these people are "anti-social elements hiding behind the mask of gau rakshaks," he had said.

PTI