2 truck drivers attacked on suspicion of smuggling cattle

About 10-12 people reportedly affiliated with Hindu factions had allegedly halted the truck, forcibly removed the drivers from the vehicle and attacked them.

Two people, who were transporting cattle in a goods carrier, were allegedly attacked by people purportedly associated with Hindu right-wing groups and then handed over to the police, according to people familiar with the matter.

Two people, who were transporting cattle in a goods carrier, were allegedly attacked by people purportedly associated with Hindu right-wing groups (File photo)

Deputy Commissioner Of Police Rohan Jagadish said that the incident happened on Sunday evening when the two victims were attacked by people purportedly associated with Hindu factions after being intercepted near Suvarna Vidhan Soudha on the Pune-Bengaluru national highway. He further said that one of the truck drivers, who was injured in the assault, has been admitted to Belagavi Institute of Medical Sciences (BIMS) hospital and is currently recuperating.

He said, “A complaint against the attackers will be filed once the injured driver provides details. Meanwhile, the cattle that were being carried in the truck were relocated to a gow shala (cattle shed), and the truck has been recovered. The drivers reported that prior to the attack, the windshield of the vehicle was shattered by the group using sticks.”

The DCP said that about 10-12 people reportedly affiliated with Hindu factions had allegedly halted the truck, which was en route to Hubballi from Maharashtra. The drivers, Umar Moyuddin (46) from Kasaragodu in Kerala, and Sunilkumar (36) were forcibly removed from the vehicle and then attacked, he said, adding that Moyuddin is currently receiving treatment in a government hospital.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Jagadish Shettar, who visited the scene, urged the police to file a case under the Anti-Cow Slaughtering Act. He said, “Upon receiving the information, I immediately proceeded to the scene where the drivers were apprehended to prevent any untoward incident.”

However, the police quoted the drivers as stating that they were not directly involved in the cow slaughtering business but had merely been hired to transport the animals to Hubballi.

Responding to Shettar’s remark, Belagavi district Congress chief Vinay Navalgatti said: “Its all politically based to attract the votes of Hindus, which will never work out.”