Supreme Court: States to compensate cow vigilantism victims

The Supreme Court on Friday, said states are obligated to compensate victims of cow vigilantism incident. The bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra asked state governments to engage a senior police officer in every district to stop violence in the name of cow protection. On September 6, the bench asked the states to submit compliance reports on its order asking governments to appoint a nodal officer in each district to prevent violence. According to the order, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh filed acquiescence reports. The bench further emphasized other states to submit their reports soon. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing on behalf of one of the petitioners, pointed out that in cases of cow vigilantism, the perpetrator is usually out on bail, while the victim's face persecution. The Supreme Court has been hearing three petitions on cases challenging certain laws that protect cow vigilante groups in India. In April, the court had ordered Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Karnataka to file reports on the rising incidents of cow protectionism. In July, the Centre had told the Supreme Court that it was the state's duty to handle incidents of cow vigilantism. The next hearing is scheduled for October 31.