Image used for representation
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
Three people were arrested in Aligarh district in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday (May 25, 2025) on charges of beating up four people and setting on fire a mini-truck allegedly laden with beef on Saturday (May 24). Two first information reports (FIR) have been registered over the issue. Special police teams have been formed to identify and arrest other attackers, and the police are waiting for a lab test report on the meat to proceed further in the case.
The four injured individuals, identified as Akeel 35, Nadeem, 32, Akil, 43, and Arbaaj, 38, are currently receiving treatment at Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College Hospital in Aligarh.
“We received information that a few people supplying meat suspected to be beef in a vehicle were stopped and thrashed by some villagers under Harduaganj police station limits. The local police and I immediately reached the spot. People who were beaten up by the public were taken to safety and admitted to the hospital for medical treatment. They are out of danger. The allegations are being investigated and the meat sample has been sent to Mathura for lab test,” Amrit Jain, Superintendent of Police, Aligarh Rural, told The Hindu.
“We have filed two FIRs, one on the basis of the complaint received from the villagers about illegal cow slaughtering and transportation of the meat, and the other FIR is registered based on the petition of the father of one of the injured against some named and other unidentified individuals at Harduaganj Police Station. Three people have been arrested, and we are examining available evidence to identify the other attackers. We are waiting for the report on the meat sample to proceed further. Whatever facts come to light during the course of investigation, based on that, arrest and legal action will be taken,” Mr. Jain said, adding that there is peace in the locality now.
Right-wing group’s name crops up
The named individuals accused in the FIR are linked to a fringe right-wing group.
Teams from different political parties, including the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress, and social groups visited the injured in the hospital. They demanded that strict action be taken against the accused.
Opposition political parties targeted the State government over the incident, questioning if attack on Muslims and cow vigilantism have become a state policy. “What has happened in Aligarh is in continuation of various forms and means of attack on the Muslim community. Cow vigilantism has become a state policy with Muslims being beaten up by elements and fringe groups close to the BJP. The name of a lesser-known Hindutva group has cropped up in the Aligarh episode. The administration must punish individuals taking law into their hands,” said Shahnawaz Alam, national secretary, Congress.
The Samajwadi Party said that after the Pahalgam terror attack, some groups with vested interests were trying to create such an atmosphere as to target the Muslim community. “After Pahalgam, many incidents of attacks on Minorities have been reported in U.P. Some people with vested interests are trying to target the Muslim community and the Aligarh incident of cow vigilantism is one such example. The government should take serious note of it and make sure such incidents are not repeated in future,” said Ameeque Jamei, an SP spokesperson.
Published – May 25, 2025 10:26 pm IST