Above: Pehlu Khan
Ignoring the dying declaration of dairy farmer Pehlu Khan, who was lynched on the suspicion of carrying cattle for slaughter on April 1 near Alwar, six men who had been booked on lynch-mob allegations have been cleared and the case closed by the police. This means that there is nobody at present who can be shown as a suspect in the gruesome murder.
A news item carried by The Hindustan Times says that investigations into the horrific and inhumane incident have been closed by Rajasthan Police. The daily also claims that the police was under pressure by influential right wing people to protect cow vigilante groups. Such vigilante groups have so far killed 29 people on mere suspicion.
There was enough evidence – including phone records – that three of the six in question were actually linked to Hindu right-wing organisations, the daily said.
The daily says: “The staff of the cow shelter, Rath Gaushala, has maintained that the six – Om Yadav (45), Hukum Chand Yadav (44), Sudhir Yadav (45), Jagmal Yadav (73), Naveen Sharma (48) and Rahul Saini (24) – were present on their premises, which was about four-km from the attack site. Rath Gaushala is patronised by Jagmal Yadav.”
The daily quotes a police report in this, which says: “The statements of witnesses in the case including policemen and the employees of the Rath Gaushala indicate that none of the accused was present at the time of the attack. Call record details of the six people along with Base Transceiver Station (BTS) location of mobiles further support this.
“Based on the findings of the investigating officer, it is hereby recommended that the names of the six accused be removed from the case as they have been found not guilty,” the report said, according to the daily.
—India Legal Bureau