Cows donated by devotees to temple end up in slaughterhouses!

Chamarajanagar, Nov 26: Devotees have expressed their objection to the auctioning of the cows and calves donated to Male Mahadeshwara Betta near Kollegal in Chamarajanagar district by devotees as part of their vows, after it was came to light that they ended up in slaughterhouses.

After reports over the auctioning spread in the region, devotees and residents living in the vicinity of the Mahadeshwara shrine staged a protest in front of the office of the temple development authority on Wednesday, demanding that the auctioning of cows be cancelled.

The protestors also demanded that the Temple Development Authority should set up a shelter for cows and look after them, since the animals were gifts offered by the devotees to the presiding deity.

The tradition of offering animals to the shrine has been in existence since over 50 years, and cows are offered to the shrine with the intention that the 'Abhisheka' of the deity can be done with the milk collected from these cows.

According to officials, the shrine receives around 80-100 cows and calves every month. In a year, approximately 1,000-1,200 cows and cattle arrive at the Mahadeshwara Betta. The temple development authority has no shelters to look after the cattle that are donated by devotees.

Until recently, the temple came under the ambit of the Muzrai Department. At present, it is managed by Male Mahadeshwara Temple Development Authority, which continues to hold the auctioning of animals to generate revenue for the temple's development.

Very recently it was came to light that the cows donated by devotees were being auctioned to slaughterhouses in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, which has hurt the religious sentiments of the devotees.

Although the auctioning has been the usual practice, the protestors have demanded that the practice of auctioning be cancelled. They have alleged that the temple authorities themselves were encouraging cow slaughter of the cows donated by devotees.