No one killed Pehlu Khan

The dying declaration of the 55 year-old dairy farmer, Pehlu Khan of Alwar, Rajasthan said: “About 200 men stopped our pick-up van and started abusing and assaulting us. While assaulting, they were taking the names Om Yadav, Hukum Chand, Navin Sharma, Sudheer, Rahul Saini and Jagmal between them and saying that they are members of Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal. They said whoever passes through Behror with cows will be beaten up like this.”

Inspite of this dying declaration, one of the strongest form of evidence and video recording of the mercilless lynching, the Rajasthan police have closed their investigations against the six people named by the dying victim. It must be recalled that Pehlu Khan, his two sons and others were attacked, allegedly by gau rakshaks, on April 1 this year,while on their way to Haryana after buying cattle from Jaipur. Pehlu Khan died two days later.

Are the Rajasthan police protecting cow vigilantes?

The peremptory manner in which the cases against the accused were closed without even proper investigations has raised the question in many sections of media that the Rajasthan government is protecting the so called “gau-rakshaks.” On asking, the Alwar SP Rahul Prakash told the media, “They [the six accused] have been found not guilty mainly because of three reasons: first, they are not seen anywhere in the video recordings. Second, their location, as per their mobile phones, was found not to be on the spot. Third, the witnesses said that these six were at Dehmi gaushala, and not on the spot [of assault],”

“This is betrayal. We heard the names [of the accused] too. We will seek an inquiry again,” said Pehlu Khan’s son Irshad, who had been with him during the assault.