Lucknow: Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav today described Azam Khan as a "cow lover" and said the UP minister has done a lot for the animal.
"Azam Khan is a cow lover. He has done a lot for cows. He is the first person to raise voice against its slaughter," Yadav said while addressing a gathering here.
Khan had last month called for a complete ban on cow slaughter, saying he was personally against it as it hurt the religious sentiments of a community.
The minister had said, "It was sad that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) were raking up the issue for political mileage and cow slaughter was a crime during the reign of Muslim rulers."
"During the rule of the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar, stringent penal provisions were in place for people involved in cow slaughter," he had said.
"I would like to exhort all those who have cows to take care of them and when they die, to cremate them with full honour," Khan had stated.
SP chief Yadav was addressing a 'Gau-puja' programme at Kanha Upvan here. He exhorted people to keep at least one cow as its milk was good for health.
He eulogised cow milk for "making him strong" and said he became wrestler after drinking it.
"We still have 16 cows in our village. I have become 'pahalvan' (wrestler) after drinking cow milk and I am still strong," he said.
Hailing contribution of Kanha Upvan, where cows are kept, Yadav said despite slaughtering of cows at some places, this is the place where they are being given a lot of care.
He also appreciated initiatives of younger son Prateek Yadav for taking care of cows and saving them.
