Is it time to accept that ‘gau rakshaks’ are just goons with a ‘license’ to kill?

Haryana adjacent to Delhi Faridabad A sensational incident came to light in NIT-5. 19-year-old Aryan Mishra, who lived in NIT-5, was very close friends with his/her landlord’s son Harshit. Aryan had returned from a birthday party around 1.30 am on 24 August. Then Harshit asked him/her to go to a local mall for breakfast. Aryan might not have expected that this late night trip would be the last trip of his/her life. Aryan was shot dead by members of a Gau Rakshak group. Gau Rakshaks claim that they committed the crime due to mistaken identity. This incident has once again raised the question whether such groups formed in the name of Gau Rakshak should be given such a free hand?

what happened that night

The incident took place around 1:30 am on August 24, when Harshit, his/her brother Shanky, their mother and a neighbour went to a nearby mall to eat noodles. Aryan also joined them. An official from the NIT police station said, “They ate noodles at a stall near the mall and were returning home in their Duster car at around 2:20 am. On the way, a Swift car started chasing their Duster and honked repeatedly.” Shanky, whose official name is Sagar Gulati, is an accused in an attempted murder case. he/she thought he/she was being chased either by plainclothes policemen or members of the family he/she had attacked.

Aryan was shot after chasing him/her for 30 kms

“he/she asked his/her brother Harshit to drive faster. As the Duster picked up speed, the Swift driver too continued the chase,” the police officer said. Both the cars took the Delhi-Agra highway and the chase continued for about 30 km. Meanwhile, bullets were fired from the chasing car. A bullet hit Aryan in the head and Harshit stopped the car near the Gadhpuri toll plaza. The occupants of the car got out and walked up to the window where Aryan was seated. They fired at him/her again, this time from a very close range and that too right on the neck.

12th class student Aryan Mishra was killed on suspicion of cow smuggling, what happened from the night of the murder till now? Know everything

When the attackers realized their mistake

The police officer said, ‘The attackers looked at Aryan closely after firing and then fled from the spot. Perhaps they realized their mistake. Also, there were women sitting in the back of the car.’ Aryan was immediately taken to SSB Hospital in Faridabad, but he/she died on August 24. The youngest son of the family, Aryan had left school after class 11 to help run the house. he/she had enrolled in class 12 from Open School. he/she was also working at a mobile shop in Ghaziabad. his/her elder brother Ajay told that Aryan was also trying to make a career in digital marketing. he/she had started helping a friend in making social media videos.

The family is just demanding justice

Ajay told TOI that his/her younger brother Aryan had become a ‘devout Hindu’ and had gone on the Kanwar Yatra this year. “The saffron flag you see outside our house was put up by Aryan. he/she had returned from the Kanwar Yatra last month and had blisters on his/her feet. A pandit had told him/her to feed the cows regularly, so he/she used to do it despite his/her busy schedule,” Ajay said. his/her father Siyanand Mishra had initially filed a complaint thinking that the attack was an attempt to kill his/her landlord’s son Shanky. This is because he/she was also in the car at the time and has several cases registered against him/her.

The incident was committed by cow smugglers, this is how it was revealed

However, after searching the houses of the two suspects and several rounds of questioning, their involvement was ruled out. ACP (Crime) Aman Yadav said that they arrested Anil Kaushik and his/her accomplices Varun, Krishan, Adesh and Saurabh, all residents of Faridabad, after identifying them from CCTV footage. The ACP said, ‘It was Anil Kaushik who fired a total of four rounds at the youth. During interrogation, the five accused claimed that they were moving around in their Swift car when they suspected that the Duster rider was involved in some criminal activity. So, they followed him/her and fired at him/her. There was no previous animosity between them.’

‘If action is not taken against the culprits, we will give up our lives’

Siyanand Mishra said that if action is not taken against the culprits within two months, he/she and his/her wife are ready to give up their lives. The boy’s father met the main accused Anil Kaushik for some time. Siyanand Mishra said, ‘Anil stood in front of me with folded hands. he/she said you are a Brahmin, and I am also a Brahmin. he/she said that he/she has made a big mistake. he/she told me that he/she chased the car in which Aryan was riding, thinking that he/she was a cow smuggler.’

Who is Anil Kaushik, who is accused of murder?

Anil Kaushik, the prime accused, has been an active ‘gau rakshak’ on highways around Delhi and Gurgaon. he/she is a member of the official Gau Raksha task force in Faridabad. Puran Yadav, vice-chairman of the Haryana Gau Seva Aayog, confirmed that Kaushik has been a member of the Faridabad Gau Raksha task force for a year. “he/she has the authority to pass on information about cow slaughter and smuggling to the police,” Puran Yadav said. What happened late on August 24: Kaushik and four other gau rakshaks did what they usually do when they followed the Duster in which Aryan and others were travelling. The chase is believed to have been based on a clue that the car contained beef. According to sources involved in the investigation and the Haryana Gau Seva Aayog, Kaushik may have acted on a false information, which they claim was spread by rivals of one of Aryan’s associates.

Murder in the name of cow protection due to misinformation!

Police say the role of gau rakshaks and task forces is limited to providing information. Maintaining law and order is beyond their jurisdiction. However, FIRs lodged in several police stations show that Kaushik was actively involved in chasing and stopping suspicious vehicles. Despite the police initially claiming that Kaushik had no criminal history, it emerged that two cases were registered against the gau rakshak. One for snatching a mobile phone and the other for extortion. Despite this, the 37-year-old could not be stopped from becoming a member of the district gau raksha task force.

Is the background of cow protectors not checked?

When asked about background checks for non-official members, a senior member of the commission said police verification is mandatory before appointment. Had it been a heinous case, I think they would have flagged it. If it is not a serious allegation, then the principle of presuming innocent until proven guilty applies, the member said. Police said Kaushik also has a weapon license, but the gun was deposited in the armoury after elections were announced in the state on August 16. On the night of the incident, Kaushik had a country-made pistol with which he/she allegedly shot Aryan.

Aryan’s murder is not an isolated case…!

Kaushik’s arrest has also revealed his/her influence in the region in the matter of cow protection. Based on Kaushik’s complaints, cases have been registered in at least two police stations in Faridabad since May under the state’s cow protection law (Haryana Gauvansh Sanrakshan and Gausamvardhan Act). In the complaints, Kaushik has been identified as a member of the Special Gau Raksha Force of the Haryana Gau Seva Commission. On May 30, Arif – who was injured after being beaten up – was arrested at the Mujesar police station. In the case registered against him/her, Kaushik’s complaint reads, “I am a member of the Special Gau Raksha Force (Haryana Gau Seva Commission) and a permanent member of the Live for Nation organisation. We had received information from a friend, Adesh Kumar, that Arif and Mahipal were taking cows from Sarurpur to Madalpur for slaughter. We stopped them on the Sarurpur-Madalpur road and rescued a cow. We caught Arif, who was walking with the cow, but Mahipal, who was following him/her on a bike, abandoned the vehicle and fled from the spot. Despite all our efforts, the local people beat up Arif.

Questions kept being raised on cow protectors

Just two days before Aryan’s murder, Kaushik had filed a complaint documenting his/her inability to prevent an incident of cow smuggling in the early hours of August 22. “I also received a video related to the incident and reached the spot with my team. But before we could reach there, three to four accused managed to flee with two or three cows loaded in their pick-up van. I tried my best to trace them but was unsuccessful. Please take appropriate legal action,” Kaushik wrote in his/her complaint. In December last year, an FIR filed by a police officer cited Kaushik as a member of the public who had agreed to become a witness. “Along with the raiding team and public witness Anil Kaushik, we set up a blockade and saw five people bringing two cows from Shyam Nagar Phase-2 Sarurpur side. On seeing us, the accused left the cows and fled from the spot,” the FIR said.

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Back to back incidents a matter of concern

Aryan’s murder mirrors previous cases reported in the state. On August 28, a 24-year-old man from West Bengal was beaten to death in Haryana’s Charkhi Dadri district on suspicion of eating beef. Five men associated with the gau rakshak group were arrested. Other gau rakshaks, such as Monu Manesar, have also been charged with chasing and stopping suspected cow smugglers. Manesar was arrested in February 2023 for his/her alleged role in the killing of two men from Bharatpur in Rajasthan. In February, another resident of Nuh, Waris Khan, died of injuries sustained in an accident when he/she was allegedly chased by gau rakshaks.

‘Hindu or Muslim, all are equal… Are Muslims not human beings?’

Although Haryana’s Gau Raksha law is applied to these groups, an analysis of cases registered under the law in 2023 showed that such accused are acquitted in most cases due to lack of evidence. In 2017, the Supreme Court had cautioned states not to give free hand to cow protectors. After Aryan’s murder, his/her father Siya Nand also questioned why such groups should be allowed to operate openly. he/she said that if cow protectors come to know about smuggling, they should inform the police. They cannot kill anyone. These cow protectors have formed private groups. If tomorrow they have enmity with someone, does it mean that they can shoot anyone in the name of ‘gau raksha’. Then can they claim that the person was transporting a cow? he/she said, ‘Hindus or Muslims, everyone is equal. Are Muslims not humans?’