Cow Vigilantes Lynch Delhi Farmhouse Caretaker For Alleged Cattle Slaughter, Selling Beef

The family of Rajaram, who was beaten to death by a group of gau rakshaks in Delhi has denied allegations that he was involved in cattle slaughter and selling beef.

The 40-year-old caretaker of a farmhouse in Dwarka's Chhawla area of South West Delhi was attacked by a group of cow vigilantes on Monday after rumors spread that a cow was being slaughtered there.

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Rajaram who was rushed to a hospital succumbed to his injuries later.

According to his wife Jhaso Devi, Rajaram was targeted ¡°by locals¡± for no reason.

"My husband is innocent. All he did for earning extra is selling cow milk to nearby villagers and run a battery rickshaw which was taken on rent," she said.

Jhaso Devi said her husband used to earn Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000 per month as a caretaker of the farmhouse owned by a local doctor.

"He had been sick for over a year owing to liver-related ailment for which he was seeking treatment. He had never indulged in cow slaughter or any illegal activities," Devi told PTI.

She said her 16-year-old son is the only bread winner of the family now and had recently started working at a gaushala.

Co-accused admits cow slaughter

But according to the FIR, one of the men who was attacked by the gau rakshaks said that they were called by Rajaram to kill cows for meat.

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The injured, who is a fruitseller by profession, alleged that he and his friends were often called by Rajaram to slaughter cows that he used to bring from his native place in Muzafrnagar, Bihar.

He claimed that after slaughtering the cows, they used to cut them and package the meat for sale.

The fruitseller claimed that he had worked for Rajaram before and was paid around Rs 500-1,000.

Gau rakshaks came before police

According to the police, they received information that a group of men was slaughtering cows and selling the meat in the area on the intervening night of April 10 and 11.

But before the police team could reach there, 10-15 unidentified people, claiming to be 'gau rakshaks', reached the farmhouse and attacked the men who were there.

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"When we reached the spot, we found the men were being attacked. The police personnel intervened and all injured persons were taken to nearby hospitals," a police officer said.

Five arrested for cow slaughter

Shankar Chaudhary, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) said that an incident of cow slaughter was reported and the team arrested five persons involved in the matter.

"Later, one of the accused, Shanu, alleged they were thrashed by miscreants.

"Rajaram, who was a suspect in the cow slaughtering case, was taken to a hospital but felt unwell. He was rushed to RTRM hospital where he died. We are investigating the matter and will arrest the miscreants," he said.

Like most places in India, the slaughter of cows is banned in Delhi, but the slaughter of buffaloes is legal in the national capital.

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