26-yr-old chases cow smugglers in Gurugram, gets shot at
GURUGRAM: A 26-year-old man, member of a cow protection group, was shot at when he and three other volunteers were chasing suspected cow smugglers in Sector 10 on Thursday. Police said that the man sustained a gunshot wound to his chest and is undergoing treatment at Medanta Hospital in Sector 38.
Mohit alias Monu, the victim, a resident of Manesar, identifies himself as a cow vigilante, the police said. He is also the district convener of Bajrang Dal.
Police said the chase lasted for around 40 minutes.
The incident took place around 3am on Thursday, when the victim and other volunteers allegedly spotted a white Mahindra Bolero pick-up truck, in which cows were being ferried, near a checkpoint in Bhondsi. There were allegedly six men travelling in the vehicle — three in the front and the others in cargo section.
In the police complaint, Manoj alias Mangal, who was part of the chase, said they signalled to the truck driver to stop but he did not. When they started chasing the vehicle in their Mahindra Bolero Camper, the truck driver took a U-turn just before the checkpoint and went towards Gurugram.
He added that when they caught up with the truck, one of the accused allegedly pushed out a cow in front of their SUV to throw them off track. “When the smugglers approached Badshahpur, they threw two more cows out and went towards Jharsa village, through Vatika Chowk. They then drove towards Bakhtawar Chowk, where they pushed out another cow in front of our vehicle, but we did not stop. They turned their vehicle towards Beriwala Bagh and went to Shakti Nagar, where they threw a spare tyre at us,” Manoj said in the FIR.
According to the police complaint, the suspects then went towards Kadipur village in Sector 10, through Pataudi Chowk and stopped in front of a government school. “The man sitting on the front seat beside the driver brandished a countrymade gun and then the driver shot at Monu, who was on the driver’s seat,” Manoj said. Manoj alleged that he tried to contact the police by dialling the helpline while they were travelling on the Golf Course Road, but he did not get a response. “I must have tried at least 15 times to get in touch with the police. The suspects even broke through a checkpoint on the highway, near Medanta Hospital. After 40 minutes, when we reached Rajiv Chowk, I was able to contact the officials of Sector 10 police station. While I was talking to them, one of the smugglers shot at Monu with his gun.” Rajiv Deswal, DCP, crime, denied the claim and said that the police were right behind the vehicles and chasing them. A case was registered.