Rajasthan’s ruling BJP MLA, Gyan Dev Ahuja, has warned that if anyone indulges in cow smuggling or slaughter, he will be killed.
Mr. Ahuja’s threat came in response to an alleged cow smuggling incident in Alwar district on Saturday.
“ Mera to sidha sidha kehna hai ki gau taskari karoge ya gau kashi karoge to yun hi maare jaoge (I say this clearly: if you smuggle or slaughter cows, you will be killed),” he told presspersons.
No stranger to controversy, Mr. Ahuja had previously claimed that the premier Jawaharlal Nehru University was a “hub of sex and drugs, where 3,000 used condoms and 2,000 liquor bottles were found daily”.In Alwar, an alleged cow smuggler was caught and beaten by local residents in Ramgarh area, which often sees violence by cow vigilante groups. However, Mr. Ahuja claimed the accused was injured after his vehicle overturned. “Three men were smuggling cows. When the police chased them, they tried to escape through narrow lanes of a village and the vehicle overturned, injuring one of the smugglers. Two others managed to escape,” the Ramgarh legislator claimed when contacted.
He said people resented cow smuggling and slaughter. “There is anger among people against cow smugglers because they smuggle cows, because they open fire at the police when the police try to prevent them. They also take roads through villages in Alwar to escape to Haryana and throw stones at the villagers,” he said.
‘Alarming increase’
Mr. Ahuja said there had been a sudden spurt in cow smuggling of late. “More than 100 incidents have occurred in the past few days, which is alarming and unusually high. The police are also doing their job to check such incidents,” he said.
Circle Officer Alwar South Anil Kumar said a man — later identified as Zakir — was arrested for smuggling cows on Saturday. He was beaten by villagers before the police took him in custody. “A police party tried to stop the mini-truck but the accused fled after opening fire at the police. There were 8-10 bovine animals in the truck,” Mr. Kumar said.
