While one would jump to the conclusion that it was likely an attempt by cow slaughterers to provoke, what makes the case sinister is the statement in the cow slaughter FIR by complainant Yogesh Raj. Raj is a 22-year-old law student, who is also Bulandshahr district convener of Bajrang Dal. His statement has raised a big question mark on the role of Hindu outfits in the case.

His statement says that when he was walking in a field in Mahaw village around 9 am with a group, he saw seven people from his Nayabaans village slaughtering cows who ran away after being spotted. The names of the accused are mentioned in the FIR.

This statement doesn’t add up. One, the police have found that the carcasses were at least 48 hours old and not freshly slaughtered as claimed. Two, statements by the family of Rajkumar reveal they found the carcasses as early as "7-8 am". Three, of the seven Muslim men named in the FIR, two have been found to be minors and other two reportedly shifted out of Bulandshahr 10 years ago. Four, statement by Yogesh's cousin, that Yogesh left for Mahaw after learning of the carcasses over the phone, too contradicts his version.

Both Yogesh Raj and Chaudhary are accused in the violence, and are absconding.

Some reports have even put the needle of suspicion on the Hindu outfits hinting that they had a role in planting of the carcasses and that the violence was pre-planned.

What Sparked The Violence?

As per tehsildar Bhaskar, members of Hindu outfits arrived around 9.30 am and loaded the carcasses on a trolley.

Members of the Hindu outfits have refuted the conspiracy charges against them. Accused Shikhar Agarwal, who is linked with Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) youth wing in Siyana and is an accused in the violence, has uploaded a video statement where he has blamed slain officer Subodh Kumar Singh for the villagers’ fury. He has said that it was Singh who stopped Agarwal and his aides from taking cow remains to Chingrawathi police booth to file an FIR. As per Agarwal, Singh even threatened to kill him and his aides. He also said that contrary to statements that Singh came in only later, the officer was present at the site of the incident throughout.