Delhi BJP Councillor Injured In Stray Cow Attack as City's Cattle Crisis Worsens
New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) councillor Shashi Chandna was gravely injured in a stray cattle attack on Wednesday (June 24) and is currently undergoing treatment in an east Delhi hospital, reported PTI.
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) councillor from the Mandawali ward was reportedly returning from a nearby temple in her constituency at around 10 am on Wednesday when the animal charged at her and flung her into the air. "I hit my head on the road and sustained a few more injuries," Chandna told PTI over a phone call.
The incident comes amid rising concerns over the poor management of stray cattle in the national capital. On June 19, a nine-year-old child was severely mauled by a stray cow in Delhi’s Tughlakabad Extension, with the CCTV footage showing the child standing in a narrow lane when the cattle suddenly charged at him with force.
Legal vacuum
The Delhi Agricultural Cattle Preservation Act, 1994, prohibits the slaughter of agricultural cattle but does not provide sufficient alternatives for unproductive or aged cattle, contributing to increased abandonment of animals. Under the existing rules, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is empowered to penalise illegal or unlicensed dairies, cancel licenses and sever water and electricity connection to shelters that continually let their cattle loose.
Owners who let their cattle stray on streets after milking them are liable to a fine of Rs 1,000. Furthermore, according to the New Delhi Municipal Council regulations, stray cattle are strictly banned from the area, unless approved by the chairman of the council.
Last year on March 28, Delhi Home Minister Ashish Sood had announced that the BJP government will be introducing a legislation to conserve and protect stray cows in the city. The proclamation followed BJP member Ashok Goel's private member resolution, urging the government to set up cattle shelters across the city. The MLA had cited official data that over 25,393 complaints of stray cattle-related incidents had been filed with the Delhi Police between January 1 and February 19, 2025 alone.
A law for stray cow conservation is said to be under consideration by the Delhi government, which seeks to incorporate clauses from the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and impose penalties for mismanagement of existing cow shelters (gaushalas). However, it has reportedly been delayed due to "deliberations" to make it "foolproof".
Delhi government's promise of 'modern' gaushalas
On March 30, 2026, Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta had released a fund of Rs 20.26 crore and said that her government would build 10 "modern" gaushalas for stray cows. She added that the government will also equip 40 existing gaushalas with clean energy sources, sanitation and veterinary facilities.
On April 29, Gupta announced that the Delhi government is working on a plan to connect gaushalas with the ridge forest so as to permit cows to live in natural settings and reduce stray animals. She claimed that the government had identified land for establishing new cowsheds and that a gaushala spread over one acre and housing nearly 2,000 cows, would be shifted to one of the identified locations.
Gupta also said that s 100 crore had been sanctioned from the Chief Minister’s Development Fund (CMDF) for the redevelopment of dairy colonies.
Rekha Gupta's public love for cows
Gupta has time and again publicised her claimed reverence for cows. In one video she poste on X, with folded hands, she urges a man to not feed a cow on a busy road, and directs him towards designated cow sheds.
आज राजधानी में भ्रमण के दौरान, मैंने देखा कि एक व्यक्ति ने अपनी कार से रोटी सड़क पर फेंकी- संभवतः गाय को खिलाने के उद्देश्य से। मैंने गाड़ी रुकवाई और उस व्यक्ति से आग्रह किया कि कृपया ऐसा दोबारा न करें।
रोटी हमारे लिए केवल भोजन नहीं है, वह हमारी संस्कृति, श्रद्धा और सम्मान का… pic.twitter.com/PS0bYmOBG6— Rekha Gupta (@gupta_rekha) April 12, 2025
In another incident, Gupta halted her convoy for nearly 15 minutes on the Haiderpur flyover in northwest Delhi after cattle strayed onto the road. According to a Times of India report, she later instructed the development department to build a cow shelter in the area.
#WATCH | Shalimar Bagh: Delhi CM Rekha Gupta instructed the concerned authorities to find proper shelter for stray cattle found on Haiderpur flyover.
(Source - Delhi CMO) pic.twitter.com/CMMpmV9A3E
— ANI (@ANI) March 26, 2025
Supreme Court intervention
The Supreme Court on April 6 ordered the immediate removal of all stray animals, including cows, from national and state highways, stating that local authorities would be held accountable for lapses in removal of animals causing traffic hazards and accidents.
The court had previously directed the National Highways Authority of India on January 29, 2026, to ask concessionaires building roads to install cowsheds using their corporate social responsibility funds to stop stray animals from entering expressways.
Residents call out inaction
Meanwhile, cattle attacks on members of the public have increased significantly. Citizens have taken to social media to condemn the incidents. Deepak Sharma, an advocate, posted a video on Instagram after this week's incident, emphasising the lack of measures to prevent strays in residential areas. He alleged that even after continually raising the matter with Patparganj constituency representative and BJP politician Ravi Negi, no constructive steps have been taken to better manage the problem or to apprehend owners who abandon their cattle.
This article went live on June twenty-sixth, two thousand twenty six, at twenty-four minutes past five in the evening.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
