Gurugram: Days after the Charkhi Dadri police in Haryana arrested seven people for allegedly lynching a man they suspected of eating beef, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini asked who could prevent villagers who “revere cows” from taking such actions.
At a press conference held in Chandigarh Saturday, Saini said, “A strict law has been made in the legislative assembly for cow protection, and no compromise can be made on this. If those who are creating such situations realise the amount of reverence people in villages have for cows, they would understand.”
“If people from villages come forward, who can stop them? I want to say that such incidents should not happen, and they are unfortunate. I also want to urge people not to get involved in such actions. They should avoid them,” he added.
On 27 August, a migrant from West Bengal who worked as a ragpicker was allegedly beaten to death by a group of cow vigilantes in Haryana’s Charkhi Dadri district. A video purportedly showing the lynching surfaced on social media Saturday. It appeared to show a large group of people beating the victim, identified as Sabir Malik, with sticks and rods. ThePrint could not verify the authenticity of the video.
Dharambir Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from the Bhiwani-Mahendragarh seat, in whose constituency Charkhi Dadri lies, described the incident as “shameful” and said he would ask the police to take strict action against the perpetrators.
“It is surprising that people are seeing this happen. I don’t see cow protection in this. This is not an issue to create politics. This incident has shamed humanity. I will speak to the police and demand strict action,” said Singh, speaking to the media Saturday.
On Saturday, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra said the incident was a “killing by BJP-fulled hatred” and demanded justice.
In a post on X, Moitra said, “Haryana cow vigilantes kill 26-year-old migrant Sabir from Bengal on suspicions that he ate beef. Justice is required for him too & countless like him killed by BJP-fuelled hatred.”
Reacting to the incident, Aftab Ahmed, the Congress MLA from Nuh, alleged that there was no law and order in Haryana. He also demanded stringent action against the perpetrators.
On 27 August, according to the police, a dispute arose in Hansawas Khurd village of Badhra over the alleged consumption of beef. The dispute was between some migrant families, who had set up shacks and were living there, and a group of people who identified themselves as a cow protection group. The group had arrived in Badhra and searched the shacks, finding meat in some vessels.
The cow protection group members allegedly beat up one man, who was identified as Sabruddin, and informed the police. Badhra police officers took a number of the people who were there there, as well as the meat, back to the police station. The cow protection group demanded action and filed a case against the Badhra residents. A written complaint was, then, submitted, and the police called a doctor to take samples of the meat for identification.
However, after this, some members of the cow protection group left the police station and went to the shacks on Jui Road. From there, according to the First Information Report (FIR), they allegedly lured Sabir to the Badhra bus stop on the pretext that they would give him scrap.
After he reached the spot with another ragpicker, identified as Aseeruddin, the two were severely beaten. When local residents intervened, the group allegedly left on a bike with the two, claiming they were going to the police station. Later that night, Sabir’s body was found near Bhandwa village.
Badhra police registered a murder case on 28 August based on a complaint by Sabir Malik’s brother-in-law Sujauddin Sardar. Five adults—Abhishek alias Shaka, Ravinder alias Kaliya, Mohit, Kamaljeet, and Sahil alias Pappi—and two minors have been arrested in the case, according a press release issued by Charkhi Dadri police. The minors were sent to a juvenile home in Faridabad.
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
These are the people responsible for BJP’s dismal performance in the recent elections.
However, immoral and corrupt people like Mahua Moitra would do better to focus on the pathetic state of affairs in their own state.
Abdication. Abnegation. Dr Shashi Tharoor could add a few more words.