india

Updated: Jul 31, 2019 15:29 IST

On the day when the Rajasthan Government introduced a bill against mob lynching in the state Assembly, a man from the minority community was beaten up on suspicion of cow-smuggling in an Alwar village, about 162 kms from capital Jaipur.

Salim Khan and his two accomplices--who managed to escape-- allegedly opened fire at the villagers who were chasing them after not receiving a satisfactory answer about the nine cows they were minding through the village farmland on Tuesday night.

Salim Khan has been admitted to the intensive care unit of Alwar government hospital. The two villagers injured in the firing were also hospitalised but are reported to be out of danger.

A team of Rajasthan Police led by Jaipur range Inspector General of Police (IGP) S Sengathir and Alwar Superintendent of Police (SP), Deshmukh Anil Paris was camping in the village since Tuesday evening to monitor law and order situation.

Deputy SP Alwar, OP Meena said five men were bathing at a tube well in Patthar Pahadi village on Tuesday evening around 8 pm when they saw three men passing through a farmland with eight or nine cows in tow.

“When confronted about the cattle, the three men abused the villagers. The village youth then chased the suspected cow smugglers on motorcycles and nabbed one of them while two others fled,” Meena said.

The three suspected cow smugglers allegedly opened fire, injuring two villagers, before Salim Khan was caught and brought back to the village and beaten up.

Alwar’s deputy SP, OP Meena was the first to rush to the village after learning about the incident. Police recovered one country made pistol from Salim Khan’s possession. Khan was later hospitalised.

Meena said the Police took statement from Ramjeet Gujjar, one of the two villagers injured in the firing but the suspected cow smuggler Saleem Khan was not in a position to give his statement.

Police said the suspected cow smugglers were from Bharatpur town, about 110 kms from Alwar. They were conducting raids to trace the two who had allegedly managed to escape from villagers.