Background of the incident

On February 22, a pickup truck transporting two dairy cattle from Rajasthan to Lucknow lost its way in Palwal, Haryana. The vehicle was intercepted by a group of cow vigilantes riding motorcycles, who suspected the occupants of cow smuggling. The vigilantes brutally assaulted the driver, Balkishan, and his helper, Sandeep, using lathis, swords, and hammers, causing multiple fractures and stab injuries. After the assault, they threw the duo into a canal in Gurugram’s Sohna, assuming both were dead. However, Balkishan managed to swim to safety and lodged a police complaint, leading to the arrest of five suspects.

Investigation and arrests

The police identified 11 accused in the case, with five arrested so far. The accused include Pankaj, Nikhil, and Devraj from Palwal, and Pawan and Naresh from Gurugram and Nuh, respectively. During interrogation, the accused confessed to the crime and admitted to killing Sandeep. The body of Sandeep was recovered from the canal on March 2, eight days after the incident. The police investigation revealed that the victims were legally transporting dairy cattle, but the vigilantes acted on mere suspicion.

Accused associated with “Gau Rakha Dal” Haryana

According to the police, the accused, who were associated with a cow protection group (Gau Raksha Dal, Haryana), attacked the both using lathis, swords, and hammers, resulting in multiple fractures and stab injuries. A week-long search operation led to the discovery of Sandeep’s body, a resident of Ganganagar in Rajasthan.

Palwal’s Deputy Superintendent of Police, Crime, Manoj Verma stated that the victims were transporting two dairy cattle in a pickup truck from Rajasthan to Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. On the night of February 22, they became lost and encountered the accused, who were riding motorcycles.

He said that “Truck driver Balkishan swam to safety but helper Sandeep’s body was fished out from the canal on Sunday,” as per a report in the Hindustan Times.

Victim’s dead boy recovered from canal

Thereafter, the members of the alleged cow protection group allegedly kidnapped the two on suspicion of cow smuggling, assaulted them and threw them into a canal in Gurugram’s Sohna. After being brutally assaulted by the gang, one of them died. The accused threw the two into a canal, assuming both were dead, but driver Balkishan managed to swim to safety and lodged a police complaint, as per a report in the The Hindu.

However, following Balkishan’s complaint, police announced a reward of 5,000 rupees to anyone who knows about the whereabouts of the accused.

The growing horror of self-vigilantism: cow vigilantes on the rise in Haryana

Lynching of migrant worker in Charkhi Dadri

The rise of self-styled cow vigilantes in Haryana has sparked a disturbing wave of violence, with incidents of lynching and extortion becoming more frequent. On August 27, 2024, a 26-year-old Sabir Malik, a migrant worker from West Bengal, was brutally lynched by a group of cow vigilantes over the suspicion that he had consumed beef. The attack occurred at a village bus stand in Charkhi Dadri, where Sabir was dragged away by the accused after being lured with a false promise of scrap to dispose of. Another migrant, Aseeruddin from Assam, was also attacked and hospitalised.

Increased tensions and rising fear

Sabir, a scrap dealer, was left dead near a canal in Bhandwa village, while Aseeruddin was dumped elsewhere. The brutal act was committed by individuals also linked to the ‘Gau Raksha Dal,’ a self-declared cow protection group. Following the murder, eight suspects were arrested, but the violence left a community shattered. Sabir’s tragic death leaves behind a grieving wife and a two-year-old daughter, raising questions about the growing dangers faced by migrant workers in Haryana.

19-yr-old shot dead by cow vigilantes after 30-km car chase in Haryana

Similarly, on August 24, 2024, a Class 12th student, identified as Aryan Mishra was shot dead in Haryana’s Faridabad after being suspicious of a cattle smuggler. The Victim, Aryan Mishra was chased for around 30 kilometres by a five-member group of “Gau Raksha Dal” before being killed him. All of the accused were subsequently arrested by the Faridabad Police.

Aryan was killed because cow vigilante assumed he was Muslim

It was reported that Aryan Mishra was killed by the group because they believed Aryan was a Muslim, his mother has expressed sorrow and confusion. Aryan’s mother Uma Mishra while reacting on the question of the reason behind Aryan’s killing, she said “The accused mistook him as a Muslim and killed him. Why? Aren’t Muslims human?

Aryan’s mother further questioned that “Why do you need to kill Muslims?”

However, the recent surge in cow vigilante violence in Haryana, exemplified by the brutal killing of truck conductor Sandeep and other incidents, raises serious concerns over the unchecked power of self-declared “gau rakshaks” (cow protectors). The involvement of these vigilantes with groups like Gau Raksha Dal has led to widespread fear, especially among migrant workers, minorities, and those perceived as outsiders. Disturbingly, many of the accused in these cases are suspected to have close links with local law enforcement, which raises questions about the accountability and effectiveness of the authorities.

As seen in the Palwal case, vigilantes freely engage in violent acts based on mere suspicion, often without facing immediate consequences. The fact that some accused individuals are linked to law enforcement and cow protection groups highlights the complicity and leniency that may exist within these institutions.

Related:

Haryana Horror: Migrant worker lynched and teenager fatally shot amid rising violence

Mob Lynching in 2020: Misleading Exception than a Norm

Remembering 15-Year-Old Junaid A Year After He Was Lynched

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Image Courtesy: dailypioneer.com

On Wednesday, October 30, 2019, the Rajasthan High Court (HC) quashed the cow smuggling case against Pehlu Khan who was lynched by a mob in 2017.

Pehlu Khan and sons Irshad and Arif were transporting cattle from a weekly market in Jaipur to their village in Haryana’s Nuh when a group of alleged cow vigilantes stopped him and thrashed the 55-year-old. Khan died in a hospital two days later.

Pehlu Khan’s lawyer Kapil Gupta said that a single bench of Justice PankajBhandari had ordered quashing of the FIR No. 235/2017 that was registered at Behror police station in Alwar against Pehluunder the Rajasthan Bovine Animal (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation of Temporary Migration or Export) Act, 1995, in April 2017.

During the tenure of BJP CM VasundharaRaje’s tenure, the Rajasthan Police registered FIR No. 253/2017 at Behror police station in Alwar against Pehlu Khan, Irshad, 25, Arif, 22, and Khan Mohammad, 55.Khan Mohammad, owner of the pickup in which Pehlu Khan and his sons were carrying cattle, had been charged under section 6 of the Act to be the abettor and had charged Pehlu’s sons Irshad and Arif for cattle smuggling.

Pehlu Khan’s sons appealed against the FIR, saying that they were the actual victims in the case.

Speaking to Sabrang India, Kapil Gupta said, “The court found no evidence that the cows were transported for trade. Also, the cows were milch cows and the calves were one and two years old and it couldn’t be presumed that they were being taken for slaughter.”

He also argued that they couldn’t have had been transporting cows for illegal purposes after buying them from the weekly market at INR 45,000 each.

He added that the cattle was bought from a weekly market in Jaipur and had a ‘ravanna’ (acknowledgment receipt) from the Jaipur Nagar Nigam (JMC). “They were carrying them on a pickup uncovered because they had valid documents” he said.

The Rajasthan government also filed an appeal against the acquittal of the six accused in the dairy farmer’s killing. A local court had let them off by giving them the benefit of doubt.

Related:
Pehlu Khan lynching: Rajasthan files appeal before HC
No one killed Pehlu Khan?
Pehlu Khan Murder: Courts on trial, where is the substantive justice?
Judgement in Pehlu Khan Case tomorrow: 2017 Lynching, Alwar
Pehlu Khan lynching case: Judgment on 14th August
 

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Shashi Kumar               Image Courtesy: The Hindu
 
Karnataka: In an embarrassing episode for Bajrang Dal, their own member was found smuggling cows on Friday in Karnataka, that too after the group and Vishwa Hindu Paishad (VHP) staged a protest against illegal transportation of cows on Thursday in Mangluru, Karnataka.
 
“In a release, Ravikanthe Gowda, Superintendent of Police of Dakshina Kannada, said that 48-year-old Shashi Kumar, son of Krishna Bhat of Padaru village near Vitla in Bantwal taluk, was the arrested. He is a Bajrang Dal activist. Along with him, the police also arrested Abdul Harris, 21, son of Mohammed of Kolandu village in the same taluk. On a tip-off, Vitla police sub-inspector Nagaraj H.E. and his team stopped a mini-truck at the Kadambu junction near Vitla Padnur around 11 p.m. on Thursday. They found in the vehicle four cows and a calf, all tied together,” The Hindu reported.
 
What’s more, according to the police, a Bajrang Dal activist tipped them off on the matter.
 
“They said the accused did not have any documents for transporting cattle. They had also allegedly modified the body of the truck to make it resemble a vehicle transporting construction material. The police said Harris was involved in a few criminal cases, including one of cattle theft in Alike in Bantwal taluk earlier. He also has cases registered against him at the Konaje police station in Mangaluru,” the report said.
 
The value of the cattle and vehicle is estimated at Rs. 5 lakh.
 
“The duo have been charged under appropriate sections of the Animal Act and Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act, along with Section 379 (theft) of the IPC. It was found that the car was modified in a way that it’s body could be raised. One of the accused, Shashikumar, happens to be a Bajrang Dal member as well,” a police official at Bantwal police station told The News Minute.
 
“Protection of cows is a priority for the Bajrang Dal since the group has held several agitations in the district seeking stricter laws to stop the illegal transportation of cows. On Thursday, the Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) held a protest, and Bajrang Dal convenor for South Karnataka, Sharan Pumpwell had reportedly asked Muslim leaders to issue a fatwa against those involved in illegal cow slaughter and theft,” the report said.
 
Meanwhile, the same Vishwa Hindu Parishad zonal secretary and former State president of Bajrang Dal Sharan Pumpwell claimed that Kumar was not associated with the Bajrang Dal, the VHP or any other right-wing outfit. “He alleged that the police have linked him with the Bajrang Dal only to bring disrepute to the organisation,” The Hindu reported.
 
Many Bajrang Dal activists were involved in the recent attack on Swami Agnivesh. The main accused in Gauri Lankesh’s murder is also a Bajrang Dal member.

Read Also:
Cows are safer in Modi’s India than Muslims

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Now comes the report from another village in the same state of a Muslim youth being thrashed to death for allegedly attempting to steal a cow.

The incident took place in Dagrauli village located in the Hasanpur area in Amroha district.

The villagers claim four thieves had entered the village late at night to steal a cow. According to the police, villager Brahmpal and his wife were awakened by the sound of a vehicle. Stepping out of their home they reportedly saw four youth attempting to drive away with their cow.

The couple shouted for help and caught hold of one of the youth. The villagers say that finding themselves surrounded by the villagers they resorted to firing, injuring six persons. But the villagers grabbed hold of one of the youth while three others fled from the scene under cover of fire.

The nabbed youth was beaten to death. By the time the police reached the scene, the youth had breather his last. A case has been registered. The name of the deceased youth is said to be Nasir who was a native of Rampur.

Soon after being sworn-in as chief minister, Yogi Adityanath had issued directions to the police to stop the smuggling of cows. Illegal slaughter houses have also been ordered to be sealed and the police have started action accordingly.

Following the swearing-in last Sunday, a slaughter house was shutdown in Allahabad on Monday. On Tuesday one slaughter house in Varanasi and 15 in Ghaziabad were similarly sealed. Shutting down illegal slaughter houses was part of the BJP’s manifesto issued during the recently concluded Assembly polls in UP.
 

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इस रिपोर्ट में पूरे हरियाणा में गाय तस्करी और उससे जुड़े अन्य अपराधों को लेकर अपराधियों का रिकॉर्ड सामने रखा गया है। इस रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक पिछले 8 महीनों में 86 हिन्दुओं पर गौ तस्करी और उससे जुड़े अन्य अपराधों में शामिल होने का मामला दर्ज किया गया है। वहीं करीब 421 मुसलमानों पर इस तरह के अपराधिक मामले दर्ज किए गए हैं। करीब 15 सिखों पर भी इस तरह के मामले दर्ज हैं।

हरियाणा में बीजेपी की मनोहर लाल खट्टर सरकार ने प्रदेश में गौहत्या के खिलाफ कानून बनाया था। टाइम्स ऑफ इंडिया की रिपोर्ट के मुताबिक हरियाणा गोवंश संरक्षण एवं गोसंवर्धन अधिनियम 2015 के तहत 1 जनवरी 2016 से 31 अगस्त 2016 तक 513 मामले दर्ज किए गए हैं। इनमें सबसे ज्यादा मामले गाय की तस्करी से जुड़े हैं। वहीं कुछ मामले गोहत्या और बीफ बेचने के भी हैं। इन सभी मामलों में 170 लोगों को गिरफ्तार किया गया है।
 
इन आंकड़ों के सामने आने के बाद गोरक्षा से जुड़े लोगों ने आरोप लगाया कि तस्कर खुद को बचाने के लिए हिंदुओं का इस्तेमाल करते हैं। लेकिन कुछ लोगों का मानना है कि ये मामला कारोबारी है और इसे धर्म से जोड़ना उचित नहीं है।

Courtesy: National Dastak
 

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