BJP's Cattle Ban in West Bengal: A Political Game Ahead of Eid

The BJP's recent enforcement of cattle slaughter restrictions in West Bengal, citing the 1950 Bengal Cattle Preservation Act, has disrupted a billion-dollar informal cattle trade network spanning the India-Bangladesh border. The timing, just before Eid al-Adha, appears strategically designed to generate communal tension while positioning the party as defender of Hindu sentiment. The move represents a political takeover of an existing smuggling racket rather than genuine cow protection legislation.