New Delhi: A video has emerged showing volunteers of the Gau Raksha Dal (Cow Protection Group) forcing two alleged beef smugglers to eat cow dung and drink cow urine.
According to reports, Dharmendra Yadav, president of the Gurgaon Gau Raksha Dal, admitted that his group had forced two Muslim men, Rizwan and Mukhtiar, to eat cow dung on June 10.
Yadav claimed that volunteers, acting on a tip-off, intercepted a vehicle transporting “700 kg of beef from Mewat to Delhi” on the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) Expressway. He said that his group chased the car for 7 kilometres before stopping it near the Badarpur border.
“When we caught them, they had 700 kg of beef in their car. We made them eat the panchgavya (concoction of cow dung, cow urine, milk, curd and ghee) in order to teach them a lesson and also to purify them,” stated Yadav.
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In the video, the two men can be seen sitting on the road, with the ‘panchgavya’ before them, attempting to wash it down their throats with water. Meanwhile, the volunteers are seen encouraging the duo to eat the concoction, giving them more water to make it easier. They are also forced to chant ‘Gau Mata ki Jai’ and ‘Jai Shri Ram’ as they swallow the mixture.
Towards the end of the 57-second video, the men begin to throw up on the roadside. The video comes to an abrupt end when a man is heard saying “turn off the video”.
However, Dharmendra Yadav claimed that he did not know who had shot the video.
The Gau Raksha Dal handed over the two men to the police following the incident.
Anil Kumar, Station House Officer (SHO) of Sarai Khwaja police station, said that the two men had been arrested on June 10. He said the meat in the car was confirmed to be beef.
Faridabad police PRO Sube Singh said that the Gau Raksha Dal had caught two men transporting 300 kg beef in an Accent car bearing a Delhi registration number. He said the case had been handed over to the Faridabad police because of the jurisdiction of crime. The duo have been booked under the Prohibition of Cow Slaughter Act. Later, they were sent to judicial custody.
The beef has been destroyed, said the PRO. However, he claimed the police had no knowledge of any video that had been shot forcing the duo to eat cow dung.
The Gau Raksha Dal is a vigilante cow protection group operating in several states, but is especially known for its attacks on trucks and other vehicles in Haryana and Punjab allegedly carrying cattle for slaughter, or transporting beef. The Dal has posted videos online proudly showing off its attacks. In a typical video, those driving the trucks are dragged out and brutally beaten even as the police watch helplessly.
The BJP-ruled Haryana government has enacted a tough law against cow slaughter and transportation of cattle or cow meat. However, it is silent on the role of such vigilante groups. Last year, Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij defended cow protection organisations in the state.
"The older law was weak. And this is why the cow protection organisations were formed here and are very active. But now I think all of this is under the domain of police. Even so, if someone wants to help the government within the legal limits, they may do so," he said, providing a rationale for the actions of groups like the Gau Raksha Dal.
