FIRST PUBLISHED: WED, APR 01 2015. 12 16 AM
OPINION
One wonders what Franz Kafka would have made of a recent decision taken by the Maharashtra police. The state government has banned cow slaughter. Eating beef can send a citizen to jail. Now the diligent policemen of Malegaon have decided to keep a watch on the bovine population in their town. They have begun filing photos of the cattle in Malegaon so that they are not slaughtered to satisfy the evil cravings of beef eaters. This is Aadhaar for cattle, it would seem.
We have heard of cattle being given bank loans as part of the financial inclusion plans of an earlier era. Then there was the more recent episode of how the local police came under fire for its failure to find stolen bullocks belonging to a politician in UP.
Clicking cattle mugshots is a new one. Prohibition led to the rise of bootleggers. Gold controls created smuggling syndicates. We are waiting to see what new informal institution the beef ban brings us. Till then, click away.