The Jersey cow holds a curious place in Indian political rhetoric — a symbol of both dairy prosperity and pointed political insults. BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have not shied away from turning this breed into a quirky metaphor for Opposition figures, despite the Hindu reverence for cows as “mother”.
Cow: Mother Or Insult? Politicians, Please Decide
In the colourful menagerie of Indian politics, hardly anything is sacred — not even the ‘sacred’ cow. Prime Minister Narendra Modi notoriously referred to Sonia Gandhi as a “Jersey cow” in 2004 and Rahul Gandhi as a “hybrid calf,” a jab at his parentage (Italian mother, Indian father) during his early election campaigns in Gujarat.
“Soniyaben to ek Jersey gay che and aa Rahul to ek Hybrid vachardu chhe. (Soniiyaben is a Jersey cow, and Rahul is a hybrid calf),” he reportedly said at a rally.
The pointed jibe implied Sonia was “foreign” (like the Jersey breed), and Rahul was an odd crossbreed — not quite belonging to the “native” herd of Indian leadership. This brand of barnyard banter isn’t new; political mudslinging in India often borrows from a surprisingly agricultural vocabulary.
But the irony runs deep: the very same political party that touts the cow as gau mata (mother cow), milks the Jersey metaphor to put down rivals.
Twenty-one years after Modi’s jersey cow insult, the tradition continues. Recently, a former RJD leader likened Tejashwi Yadav’s wife to a Jersey cow, prompting protests and effigy burnings in Bihar. This leader, Rajballabh Yadav, was jailed for the rape of a minor.
From Channel Islands To Indian Fields And… Politics
Before it became political ammo, the Jersey cow revolutionised Indian dairies. Bred on the British Channel Island of Jersey, the breed was imported to India to boost local milk yields, especially after the White Revolution in the 1970s.
Why did Jersey cows fit in so well? They are small, hardy, adapt to local climates, and — most importantly — pump out creamy, high-fat milk that’s perfect for making all things buttery and decadent. Indian farmers find them more profitable, and the breed’s early maturity and high fertility ensure a steady stream of income.
Jersey cows contributed to India’s White Revolution, or ‘Operation Flood’, primarily through cross-breeding with native breeds to increase milk yield and improve milk quality, producing richer milk with higher fat and protein content. So it should not be an insult, right?
The problem lies in the “foreign” origin. Even though the breed has made India its home, it is still not the ‘gau mata’ Indian Hindus have come to revere. At least, the political ‘insults’ seem to prove that.
Thanks to the Jersey’s arrival, India underwent a dairy transformation.
The “foreign” Jersey became a backbone of rural prosperity, producing more milk on less feed and revitalising the country’s economy through cooperative giants like Amul.
The Political Moo-d — Then And Now
The cow in India is used in a lot of contexts today. Sometimes it is used to denote a naive and simple person, at others, it becomes a rebuke to call someone stupid and a good-for-nothing. No demarcation of native or foreign breed there.
But, how did the Jersey cow morph from livestock to linguistic sledgehammer? Maybe it’s just too tempting — a breed that represents both economic success and foreignness.
The latest in the run up to the Bihar election saw a man allegedly abuse PM Modi’s mother. The BJP and its allies pounced on the opportunity to claim “insult to PM’s mother is an insult to the nation’s mothers”. The Congress and its Mahagathbandhan allies were quick to remind the BJP of PM Modi’s ‘Jersey cow’ and ‘hybrid calf’ remark.
Moreover, the BJP swears by the cow as “mother”. The PM was seen welcoming a cow to the PM’s residence at 7 Lok Kalyan Marg. He tweeted: “Gaav: Sarvasukha Prada [meaning cows bring happiness and prosperity to all].” But the saffron party never raises the topic of cow slaughter ban in states like Kerala, Goa, or Arunachal Pradesh.
In fact, Union minister and BJP leader from Arunachal, Kiren Rijiju dared anyone to stop him from eating beef.
Congress and Its Flip-Flops With The Cow
On the other hand, the Congress, which so passionately protects citizens’ rights to eat beef, has been shifting its stance from the time of its leader Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, who frequently used cow protection symbolism in his speeches.
However, Jawaharlal Nehru refused to bank on cow politics to appease Hindus, adhering to the principles of secularism. In fact, in 1955, Nehru threatened to step down if a beef ban bill was passed in Parliament, citing a violation of the ethos of secularism. Nehru — along with Babasaheb Ambedkar, who is now sworn by both the BJP and the Congress — opposed a blanket ban on cow slaughter.
Cut to 1969: the Congress split into two factions — one led by Kamaraj and the other by Indira Gandhi. The latter made her party symbol a gaay (cow) and a bachhda (suckling calf).
Indira chose this symbol to appease the majority Hindu population. The Hindus, primarily in the North and led by nearly 1 lakh Naga Sadhus in 1966, demanded a ban on cow slaughter. The demand was supported by a section of the (united) Congress.
The matter even went to the Parliament, marking the first major impact of the far-right Hindutva on national politics. However, despite Indira Gandhi’s attempts to play the balancing game with investigation panels and fiery speeches, the Congress split in 1969, and the cow became the symbol of trust for Indira Gandhi’s brand of politics without advocating a ban on cow slaughter.
In India, the sacred cow is never to be insulted, but a Jersey cow? She’s fair game for wordplay, even as her “native” cousins get garlanded.
Clearly, whether it’s Congress or BJP, the cow — Jersey or native — is an instrument of politics. None is ready to commit to a ban on its slaughter, but none is ready to advocate beef either. But perhaps, the native cow commands a tad more respect.
Whether in the cowshed or in the political arena, the cow rules the headlines and will continue to do so for a long time to come.