A Hindu group’s plan to campaign against cow slaughter in India’s Christian-majority Nagaland has invited criticism from several quarters, including the state’s ruling alliance. National-level Hindu leaders, such as Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand Maharaj of Jyotirmath, are scheduled to arrive for the Gau Dhwaj Yatra (cow protection march) set for Sept. 28. However, the state’s political parties say such a march would go against the sentiments of the 1.97 million people in the state, where the majority—88 percent—are Christians. A statement from the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), which leads the state’s ruling alliance, said the “event would go against the sentiment of the majority of people.” m The march could disrupt the socio-religious harmony in the state, the statement added. Alliance partner, the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urged the organisers “to reconsider the proposal.” The cow is a revered animal under Hinduism, and 20 of 28 Indian states have laws banning or regulating cow slaughter. The NDPP statement said the Nagaland legislature had already decided not to ban cow slaughter. The party observed that Nagaland became a state in 1963 under constitutional provisions safeguarding the social practices of its people, called the Nagas. In a statement, BJP Nagaland president Benjamin Yepthomi said the government of Nagaland should uphold the special provisions of the constitution. Two state legislators belonging to the Baptist Church also opposed the proposed event. Kuzholuzo Azo Nienu of the Nagaland People’s Front (NPF) expressed “shock” at the announcement of such an event in Nagaland, where beef is a staple for most Naga people. The march would be “tantamount to infringement on freedom of individual rights to choice of food.” In 2017, the NPF organised a “beef festival” in the state capital, Kohima, to protest the move to ban cow slaughter. Lawmaker Imkong L. Imchen from the BJP said the proposed march will not aid the cause of the right-wing party in Nagaland. “Beef is the most delicious food for the Nagas,” he told UCA News. As many as 20 Indian states have laws regulating the act of slaughtering cows. Leaders of religious minorities, such as Christians and Muslims, say cow vigilante groups have stepped up violence since Modi came to power in 2014.