New Delhi: In the backdrop of strong demands for blanket ban on cow slaughtering from many Bharatiya Janata Party MPs, Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi on Sunday said that money through illegal trade of slaughtered 'milking animals' goes into terrorism.

“India killing more animals than China, milking animals being slaughtered & illegally traded to Bangladesh & Middle-East. We are the largest beef exporters in the world and also killing them for leather production,” Gandhi said during a conference here.

Over 200 delegates participated in the two-day-long conference organised by Federation of Indian Animal Protection Organisations (FIAPO) and its associates.

Asserting that it was not a "political or religious issue", but an economic one, former People for Animals (PFA) Chairperson Maneka Gandhi today said, “It (killing of milking animals) is a trade of Indians, It no longer about religion, but money,” ANI reported.

Quoting a report submitted to Uttar Pradesh Police four years ago, Gandhi, who is also a noted animal rights activist and environmentalist, claimed that the money earned through illegal animal slaughtering was going into terrorism.

Further questioning the final outcome of cow slaughtering in the country, she said, “Money through trade of slaughtered animals goes into terrorism, therefore goes into killing us, why are we allowing this?”

Money through trade of slaughtered animals goes into terrorism, therefore goes into killing us,why are we allowing this?: Maneka Gandhi — ANI (@ANI_news) September 14, 2014

Gandhi futher said while members of one community sell its livestock, another slaughters it in their slaughter houses and asked people not to link animal slaughter to a particular religion or community.

Bangladesh exported one lakh tonnes of beef without rearing any "cow", she said, adding it also did not import them. "The entire trafficking is done illegally through the porous borders", she said.

The Minister also called on NGOs, volunteers and civil society to join the 'save animals movement' and urged them to set up informer systems to sound an alarm to prevent such trade.

"Deer's meat is available at many places in Rajasthan, even in Dhani (hutments)...I get such information while sitting in Delhi. Every animal organ like Horn, shelf?is illegally sold. Over 25,000 websites are full of illegal sale of animal organs," she said, PTI reported.

On a report published during the previous UPA government's regime stating that 80 per cent of milk in the country was "adulterated," Gandhi lamented, "we are drinking poison".

She asked NGOs and volunteers working for protection of animals to study the forest and wildlife acts properly and try to inform the municipal authorities about any animal cruelty.

Dissection of animals in school and college education has also stopped, she noted, adding Medical Council of India is also considering this ban. Cosmetic research and animal experimentation needs to be contained in the growing Indian culture, the Union Minister said.

However, according to reports, BJP-led NDA government is unlikely to go for a country-wide ban on cow slaughtering.

According to Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh, the government would prefer “effective” protection for cows, instead of imposing a ban on killing them, a leading newspaper said.

“If your mother is in danger, instead of asking the attackers not to kill her, it is always good to protect her effectively and properly. The ministry has a series of programmes for it,” the minister added.

Earlier, during the Budget session, a number of MPs, especially from Uttar Pradesh, had asked the government to impose a ban on cow slaughter.

Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has been demanding a complete ban on cow slaughter.

Last year, while campaigning for the Lok Sabha polls, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also attacked the then Congress-led UPA government for what he called “Pink Revolution” promoting slaughter-houses and the export of meat through subsidies and tax breaks.