Haryana Police Confirm Migrant Worker Lynched In Charkhi Dadri Did Not Cook Beef: 'Meat Not Of Cattle'

Five days ago, when Sujauddin Sardar contacted the police to follow up on the death certificate for his brother-in-law, Sabir Malik, he was informed of something the family had asserted since the 22-year-old's murder on August 27-that Malik had been lynched by cow vigilantes over false accusations of cooking beef.

"They confirmed what we have been repeating to the police and government," reported The Indian Express.

Photo Credit: PTI

Nearly two months after Malik, a migrant worker from West Bengal employed as a ragpicker in Haryana's Charkhi Dadri, was killed over suspicions that he had cooked and eaten beef at his shanty, police confirmed on Friday that a lab report showed the meat was not from cattle. Ten individuals have been arrested, with six arrests still pending, police said.

On August 27, Malik and his friend, Aseeruddin, were called to a shop by the accused under the guise of selling empty plastic bottles and then attacked.

While Aseeruddin managed to escape, the accused allegedly took Malik on a motorbike to another location and assaulted him further, which led to his death. His body was later found near the shanties where he lived, according to police.

In fact, just hours before Malik was killed, police were called to the village by a group of youths claiming that beef was being cooked and consumed in the shanties. Although the meat was seized by police and sent for testing, the accused decided to take matters into their own hands and beat Malik to death, officers reported.

On Friday, Bharat Bhushan, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Badhra, told: "The cooked meat collected from the spot was sent to a molecular lab in Faridabad. It has emerged that the meat was not cattle's."

Pooja Vasisht, Superintendent of Police, Charkhi Dadri, stated, "We have arrested 10 people, and this report will be submitted in the court along with the challan." Bhushan added that six more arrests would follow.

The complainant in the case, 21-year-old Sardar, is now back in Kolkata with Malik's widow, his sister Shakeela, and her three-year-old daughter.

He stated that they were aware of Haryana's cow protection laws. "We had been staying there for five years and never flouted the law. The allegations were levelled against Sabir after a few workers from Assam were questioned by their contractor about what they had cooked. Then cow vigilantes were informed. My brother, father, and I were taken to the police station to ask if we had beef. They said the village was on edge, and we might get into trouble if we went home. When they visited the village to collect the meat, they could have taken Sabir and others with them. Had the police stood guard until things settled down, Sabir would not have been killed," he said.

Sardar recounted that from the police station, he rang his sister to check on Sabir, but she said he had gone out. "When he didn't return in an hour, we asked the police to check. Around 4.30 pm, we were informed he was in hospital. He had died by then," Sardar said.

"After his post-mortem, they asked us to bury him there, but we begged them to let us take the body back home."

The family shared that Shakeela, Malik's widow, has since been given a job by the West Bengal government.

Alauddin Sardar, a relative who also lived in the same shanties, said they are still waiting for the post-mortem report and death certificate.

"We left all our belongings and possessions, worth Rs 2 lakh, after his death. We have not returned out of fear. The police are yet to arrest a few people, and the group that watched him get assaulted included several individuals," he said.

One of the accused, Ravinder, was reportedly the district head of the Haryana Gau Raksha Dal, according to the Bhiwani head of the organisation, Sanjay Parmar.

"The accused were part of Ravinder's team. We have faith in law and order and will let the law take its course," Parmar said.

Ravinder's friend and social activist, Shivendra Rimpi Phogat, commented, "There were repeated tip-offs regarding cow slaughter in the area, and our men had informed the police. It was wrong of them to take the law into their hands, but the police did little to avert the incident."

Phogat further alleged that the police had manipulated the sample for the lab report.