Guwahati: Eid-uz-Zuha was observed across large parts of Assam without cow sacrifice after Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma urged people to refrain from it and respect the sentiments of the majority Sanatan community.No major untoward incidents were reported, with Eidgah committees backing the chief minister’s appeal. In Barak Valley region however, six individuals were apprehended by the police on Thursday afternoon for an alleged illegal slaughter of a cow during Eid-ul-Zuha festivities on the outskirts of Silchar town.With cow slaughter largely absent, goat sacrifice was more common this time.After some Eidgah committees “voluntarily decided” to avoid cow sacrifice this Eid, Sarma praised them and said he hoped others would follow.The Dhubri Town Eidgah Committee, the Hojai Town Eidgah Kabarasthan Committee, and several other Eidgah committees in Hojai, Dhubri, Bongaigaon, Udharbond, and parts of lower and southern Assam also appealed to avoid cow sacrifice.“There was no cow sacrifice in Hojai town, and in many other places in our central Assam region, today. Especially in those town areas, where Hindus and Muslims live together, there was hardly any cow sacrifice,” said Faizur Rahman, an executive member of the Hojai Town Eidgah Committee.In parts of upper Assam, prayers were held inside mosques due to rain. At Mir Jumla Mazar Sharif in lower Assam’s South Salmara-Mankachar district, more than 10,000 people offered namaaz in one of the largest congregations.Prominent politicians also joined community namaz and urged people not to fuel controversies over sacrificeIn cosmopolitan areas, especially in and around district headquarters in the state, multiple Eidgah committees issued appeals to abstain from cow slaughter, describing it as a goodwill step.In Guwahati, favourable weather drew large crowds to Eidgah grounds such as Machkhowa, where worshippers offered namaaz with a focus on peace, harmony, and brotherhood. “In Guwahati, there is no report of cow sacrifice this Eid. We just wanted to stay away from controversies surrounding cow sacrifice,” said Masaddar Hussain, a leading citizen of the Machkhowa area.The move also appeared influenced by last year’s events in Dhubri, a Muslim-majority district in lower Assam, where animal parts were found at Hindu places of worship after Eid-ul-Zuha, followed by wall graffiti attributed to a newly formed Islamic underground group, Nabin Bangla.The incidents escalated communal tensions, leading CM Sarma to visit Dhubri. A shoot-at-sight order was issued against those attempting to incite unrest.The Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021, does not impose a blanket ban on beef consumption but places significant restrictions on cattle slaughter, including cows. The Act bans the sale or purchase of beef in neighbourhoods with non-beef-eating populations and within 5 km of any temple or Vaishnavite monastery (satra). It may also apply to other institutions or areas notified by the competent authority..
