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A 32-year-old man, identified as Sheru Susadiya from Madhya Pradesh’s Mandsaur, was allegedly lynched in Rajasthan’s Bhilwara last week over suspicion of cattle smuggling by self-styled cow vigilantes, his family has said.
Bhilwara police said they arrested five persons and registered an FIR under BNS sections for attempt to murder, voluntarily causing hurt, wrongful restraint, extortion, and unlawful assembly. A separate cow smuggling case was also lodged.
The complainant, Manzoor Pemla (36), said that his cousin Sheru Susadiya, a resident of Multanpura in Mandsaur, and Mohsin Dol, 34, had purchased a bull from Bhilwara’s Lambiya cattle fair on September 16 and were headed home in a pickup truck when, at about 3 am, a silver camper vehicle started trailing them. He said the vehicle eventually overtook them and blocked their way. Soon, some men also arrived on motorcycles.
“They pulled both of them out of the vehicle and started assaulting them, saying they slaughtered cows even after they (Sheru, Mohsin) said they had purchased the domestic cattle from a fair but they didn’t listen,” Manzoor alleged.
The complainant alleged that the accused, identified as Deva Gurjar, Kunal Malpura, Pradeep Rajpurohit, Nitesh Saini and others started assaulting the two men, but Mohsin managed to escape and hide.
“They assaulted Sheru and snatched the Rs 36,000 he had on him. Around 3.30 am, Kunal called me from Sheru’s phone and said that if I wanted to see Sheru alive and avoid police action, then I should bring Rs 50,000 or get someone to bring the money,” Manzoor alleged in the FIR.
Eventually, Sheru’s phone was switched off, and in the morning, when the family tried and failed to locate Sheru and the vehicle. “Around 3 pm, we got a call from Banera police station informing us that he was admitted in Bhilwara hospital and that he had sustained injuries to his head. By the time we reached, he was referred to Jaipur,” Manzoor said.
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Sheru succumbed to his injuries three days later, on Friday. Referring him to Jaipur’s SMS hospital’s neurosurgery department, the referral card from Bhilwara’s government had noted “head injury.”
Sheru is survived by his wife, Naseem, and two young children. Farooq, a relative, said, “We are not sure who are the five who the police claim to have arrested. We want all the culprits arrested and strictest action taken against them. We also want compensation for his young children. He also has two sisters who were dependent on him.”
In a statement, the Bhilwara police said they have arrested five persons and sent them to judicial custody, while another case of cattle smuggling has been registered, and investigations are ongoing in both cases. SP Dharmendra Singh did not respond to calls.
