Police personnel from Nuh Police Station were attacked by cattle smugglers in Haryana's notorious Mewat region leaving two constables injured. They even fired at cops, but were caught after a chase.

On Wednesday, a vehicle transporting illegal cattle was intercepted by police at check post Bibipur Mod in Mewat. The police were tipped-off about a Tata 407, No. RJ 05 GA 5061 which was stuffed with 9 cows and bulls at 11.30pm.

Knowing that the police has been alerted, the accused halted at a distant location while the cops waited throughout the night. Assuming the cops would have dispersed by morning, the suspected vehicle approached Bibipur village the next day at 10.30am.

The goons did not expect the cops would still be present at the location. On running into the police at the Bibipur Mod check-post, instead of stopping, the Mewati cattle smugglers tried to mow down Constable Manoj Kumar and Constable Mool Chand and pelted them with heavy stones. While Constable Mool Chand was severely injured in the head, Constable Manoj Kumar was struck in the back.

After attacking the police officials, the cattle smugglers tried to flee, but were chased by police personnel.

The cattle smugglers were armed with illegal firearms and opened fire on the police during the chase. ASI Balbir Singh, ASI Satbir Singh and the two constables from Nuh police station continued their heroic chase battling through the firings before finally catching up with the goons in Chilawali Village.

There were nine men in the Tata 407 namely Chauda aka Rojdaar, Shakil, Ishad, Ivrish, Kayyam, Wasim, Abid, Asif along with one driver. The accused abandoned their vehicle and animals and ran into Chilawali village.

"This is a regular affair in Mewat. We battle the meat mafia on regular basis and are constantly pelted with stones and fired at with illegal weapons which they posses. There is a threat to our lives each time we chase these Mewati cattle smugglers," said ASI Satbir Singh from Nuh Police Station.

"There are several gaurakshak organizations like Gau Gyan Foundation, Dhyan Foundation, Monu from Mensar and several other gau raksha teams that assist us by providing us information of illegal animal trafficking which helps us in nabbing these hardened criminals," said ASI Balbir Singh, who led the recent operation to nab the Mewati cow-smugglers.

The vehicle stuffed with cattle has been seized and the helpless animals inside it have now been rehabilitated at Nuh gaushala.

An Fir No. 534/17 26th July has been registered at Nuh Police Station against all nine men in the truck. All nine accused have been booked under the Arms Act, the Haryana Gauvansh Sanrakshan and Gausamwardhan Act and several sections of the IPC including section 307 for "attempt to murder".

With each animal fetching a minimum of Rs 30,000 in the illegal beef market for its meat and hide, the meat industry is surely thriving in Haryana's Mewat region where several thousand cattle are trafficked and slaughtered every month. It is pertinent to note that the possession, consumption, sale and purchase of beef in Haryana is strictly prohibited, illegal and punishable as per the Haryana Cow Slaughter Act.

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