A 24-year-old man was reportedly beaten up by a mob in Haryana’s Rohtak on suspicion of ‘cow smuggling’ on Saturday, 19 January.
The victim, identified as Naushad Muhammad, was later taken away by policemen, who, he alleged, “handcuffed” him and tied him to a bed with a chain.
“It was around 8 pm. We had reached Rohtak’s Bhalout village when I was waylaid by one Jashpal Gumana, who had chased me (on) his scooter.”Naushad Muhammad, as quoted by Firstpost
Soon after, a mob gathered and Muhammad was tied to a pole, beaten with sticks and even tortured with a burnt beedi, reported Firstpost.
After local civil society members got to know about the incident and confronted the police, a case was filed against those who were part of the mob under sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 341 (wrongful restraint), 342 (wrongful confinement), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), media reports further pointed out.
Another case has been lodged against Muhammad and two others under Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and the Haryana Gauvansh Sanrakshan and Gausamvardhan Act, purportedly after Gumana made a complaint.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has also been constituted in connection with the incident.
A man named Sunil Kumar, from Charkhi Dadri village in Haryana, has reportedly claimed that the victim worked under him and the animals he was carrying were not cows, but buffaloes.
(With inputs from Firstpost.)
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