In Karnataka, 22 cattle die after consuming leftover food from political rallies

“Sharanagouda Kandakur, a probable JD(S) candidate from the Gurmitkal Assembly constituency, had organised an election campaign on March 24. On the same evening, about 30-35 cattle in the village were fed leftover rice from the rally. On Saturday morning, locals who went searching for the cattle found them with bulging stomachs and informed animal husbandry department officials,” a local said.

Raju Deshmukh, Yadgir district deputy director, animal husbandry department, told The Indian Express that the cattle died due to metabolic acidosis. “The post-mortem suggested that the cattle had consumed a lot of food which contains carbohydrates. We found that the animals had consumed a huge amount of rice which led to the deaths,” he added.

Earlier, an animal husbandry department official had said that it was a “clear case of food poisoning”. “A preliminary probe revealed that the cattle consumed 5-6 kg of rotten food which may have led to their deaths. We have asked the villagers to clear the area as there was a lot of food disposed of unscientifically,” the official said.

In a similar incident earlier this month, seven cattle were found dead after allegedly consuming leftover food from the BJP’s Vijayasankalpa Yatra held on March 10 at Gunjalli village in Raichur taluk. An official from the animal husbandry department said that the villagers complained that the animals had fallen sick. “We have found that the cattle were fed on March 10 night and seven have died. Eight cattle underwent treatment and are out of danger,” an official said.

BJP Raichur district president Ramanand Yadav admitted that the cattle had died because of food poisoning and said that the party has reached out to the owners. “We came to know about the incident and have compensated the farmers. We will ensure that this is not repeated in the future,” he added.