Almost a month after 45-year-old Qasim was lynched in Hapur’s Pilkhuwa area, Samayuddin, a 63-year-old farmer who survived the thrashing, says he is scared for his life and is afraid to return home or even step out.
Nursing fractures in both hands and right leg, and injuries near his neck, Samayuddin, a resident of Madhapur village in Uttar Pradesh, recalls the incident of June 18, sitting in a room in the Indian Social Institute in the capital with his lawyer Vrinda Grover. “I had gone to the farms with my neighbour Hasan to bring fodder for my three cattle, when I saw a few men beating Qasim. I asked them why and they turned against me,” says Mr. Samayuddin. Mr Hasan had fled.
He remembers how the mob of at least 30 to 40 people dragged him and Qasim for about a km, all the while thrashing them with sticks, rods and “whatever they found on the way”. They were dumped in a semi-conscious state near a temple in Bajhera Khurd.
“They kept saying we slaughter cows and abused us. I told them I am a farmer, but no one listened. There were not even any cows in the fields at the time. Qasim was walking through the farms when he was grabbed,” he says.
Mr. Samayuddin claims that the police haven’t recorded his statement. “They had come when I was in the ICU, but I was unable to talk. But after I was shifted to the ward, they did not come for the statement.”
Denying the claim, Superintendent of Police (Hapur) Sankalp Sharma said that Mr. Samayuddin’s statement was recorded twice: once on June 19 and the other, “recently”.
Ms. Grover said that the written statements of the victim, his brother Yaseen and one Dinesh Tomar were sent to Inspector General (Meerut Range), demanding a fair probe.
Police role
Mr. Yaseen claims that the police asked Mr. Tomar, a resident of Handalpur village whom the family knows well, to write a complaint stating that a few men beat up the two (Qasim and Samayuddin) as they raised their voice after being hit by a motorcycle. He alleges that he was coerced to sign the complaint.
“There was no motorcycle. In fact, there was no road near the place of the incident,” Mr. Samayuddin says.
Mr. Yaseen and Mr. Tomar allege that the police told them, “we’ve been to the spot; it’s a case of cow slaughter and if you don’t write what we’re asking, you’ll all go to jail”. Mr Samayuddin says he can identify at least five persons who thrashed him.
The SP said, “Arrest warrants against 11 persons have been issued and that include all the persons he has mentioned. Four have been arrested and one has been given bail.”
Published - July 14, 2018 10:24 pm IST
