PM only worried about 'cow economy', not country's: Owaisi on Modi’s 'Om and cow' mantra ahead of polls

Agencies
September 12, 2019

Sept 12: AIMIM President Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday targetted Prime Minister Narendra Modi within hours of the latter saying some people get "electric shocks" when someone talks about "Om and cow".

Owaisi lashed out at PM Modi saying he talked about "Om and cow" keeping an eye on the assembly elections in Maharashtra and Haryana where the BJP has already kicked off its campaign.

Speaking with reporters, the Hyderabad MP said Modi was just worried about the "cow economy" and not country's.

"... his target was assembly elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand, he spoke like this, keeping that in view," he was quoted as saying by news agency.

Owaisi said every Indian heard the sound of 'Om' and Bhajans from temples and prayers from mosques, Gurdwaras, churches and others in the morning which is the beauty of India.

Modi should have stated that "all this beauty is there in the country, that people of all religions live here. But, Prime Minister talks about only one religion. It is very painful," he said.

The Prime Minister was worried about "cow economy" and not about the country's economy and decline in the GDP and did not want debates on such issues, Owaisi charged.

"Prime Minister wants that no debate takes place about painful issues facing the country like poverty and unemployment and lay-off and attention of people is removed from them," he said.

Owaisi said Modi had expressed concern about mob lynchings but it was not having any impact.

"...your government, your state governments are standing" by the oppressors instead of ensuring justice for the victims, he alleged, referring to the Jharkhand Police dropping murder charges against 11 accused in the mob lynching case of Tabrez Ansari.

The AIMIM leader said he knew a cow was a matter of faith for Hindu brethren, but the right to life under the Constitution was for humans.

While launching the National Animal Disease Control Programme (NACDP) to control foot and mouth disease (FMD) and bacterial infection brucellosis in livestock, Modi hit out at

his critics who argue that mention of words 'Om' and 'cow' takes India back to the 16-17th century, saying they are hell-bent on damaging the country.

"But, it is unfortunate that in our country the moment the word 'Om' falls on the ears of some people, they get alarmed ('baal khadhe ho jaate hai')," he said.

"They also get alarmed by the word 'cow'. They feel as if the country has gone back to the 16-17th century. This type of knowledge has only been used by people hell-bent on damaging the country and they have left no stone unturned to do so," Modi said, without naming anyone.

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News Network
December 20,2025

train.jpg

At least seven elephants were killed and one calf injured after a herd collided with the Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express in Assam's Hojai on Saturday morning, leading to disruption of rail services. 

The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express struck a herd of elephants, resulting in the derailment of the locomotive and five coaches. No passenger casualties or injuries were reported, officials said.

The New Delhi-bound train met with the accident around 2.17 am, PTI reported. The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express connects Mizoram's Sairang (near Aizawl) to Anand Vihar Terminal (Delhi). 

Railway has issued helpline numbers at the Guwahati Railway Station:-

•    0361-2731621
•    0361-2731622
•    0361-2731623

The accident site is located about 126 km from Guwahati. Following the incident, accident relief trains and railway officials rushed to the spot to initiate rescue operations.

Train Services Disrupted

Sources said that due to the derailment and elephant body parts scattered on the tracks, train services to Upper Assam and other parts of the Northeast were affected.

Passengers from the affected coaches were temporarily accommodated in vacant berths available in other coaches of the train. Once the train reaches Guwahati, additional coaches will be attached to accommodate all passengers, after which the train will resume its onward journey.

The incident occurred at a location that is not a designated elephant corridor. The loco pilot, upon spotting the herd on the tracks, applied emergency brakes. Despite this, the elephants dashed into the train, leading to the collision and derailment.

Last month, an elephant was killed after being hit by a train in Dhupguri in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district. The incident took place on November 30. 

The adult elephant was killed on the spot, and a calf was discovered lying injured beside the tracks. 

Over 70 Elephants Killed In Train Collisions Over Last 5 Years

At least 79 elephants have died in train collisions across the country in the last five years, the Environment Ministry had informed Parliament in August.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh had said the figure is based on reports from state governments and Union Territory administrations for the period 2020-21 to 2024-25.

He said that the ministry does not maintain consolidated data on the deaths of other wild animals on railway tracks, including in designated elephant corridors.

Singh confirmed that three elephants, including a mother and her calf, were killed on July 18 this year after being hit by a speeding express train on the Kharagpur-Tatanagar section in West Bengal's Paschim Midnapore district. The incident took place near Banstala between Jhargram and Banstala stations.

The minister said several measures have been taken jointly by the Environment Ministry and the Railways to prevent such accidents.

These include imposing speed restrictions in elephant habitats, pilot projects such as seismic sensor-based detection of elephants near tracks and construction of underpasses, ramps and fencing at vulnerable points.

The Wildlife Institute of India, in consultation with the ministry and other stakeholders, has also issued guidelines titled 'Eco-friendly Measures to Mitigate Impacts of Linear Infrastructure' to help agencies design railways and other projects in ways that reduce human-animal conflicts.

Singh added that capacity-building workshops were conducted for railway officials at the Wildlife Institute of India in 2023 and 2024 to raise awareness on elephant conservation and protection.

A detailed report titled 'Suggested Measures to Mitigate Elephant & Other Wildlife Train Collisions on Vulnerable Railway Stretches in India' had also been prepared after surveys across 127 railway stretches covering 3,452 km.

Of these, 77 stretches spanning 1,965 km in 14 states were prioritised for mitigation, with site-specific interventions suggested. 

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