RSPCA To Face UK Hindu Protest Tomorrow

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, (RSPCA) will come under an acute spotlight in London tomorrow over its killing of the Hindu sacred cow Gangotri inside a Krishna Temple in December. Scores of orange-robed monks plan to lead a Hindu protest in Parliament Square which will culminate in the mock killing of a cow by protestors - dressed as RSPCA officers.

Cows are sacred to Hindus, and the killing of a cow is considered to be an outrageous act. To Hindu sensibilities the killing of a cow at a temple amounts to religious sacrilege.

The cow, Gangotri, had been sick for quite some time but had no infectious disease. She was being cared for by temple residents and visiting worshippers, and was being administered pain relief under the temple's Cow Protection Project at Bhaktivedanta Manor which allows old cows and bulls to die naturally.

Entering the manor with police and a warrant on 13 December 2007, RSPCA officers euthanased the cow after distracting the staff looking after her. The resulting outrage among the Hindu community hit national headlines within hours.

The Hindu Forum of Britain (HFB) is currently running an online poll of public opinion about the killing of Gangroti.

The Hindu protest tomorrow will be held on the same day that a British delegation will pay their final respects to Gangotri by scattering her ashes in the river Ganges in the ancient pilgrim city of Varanasi in India.

The Self Help Group for Farmers Pet Owners and Others Experiencing Difficulties with the RSPCA, (shortened, thankfully, to SHG) plans to use the event to widen protest against the RSPCA. SHG says the killing of Gangotri has:

"..launched many thousands of comments and articles in the media [because] many farmers, pet owners and others have suffered similar experiences with the RSPCA."

The organisation is hoping to rally its supporters to back the Gangotri protest tomorrow.