They tried to strip, rob and then kill us: Pataudi cattle traders recount the horror
NEW DELHI: “They stopped their cars in front of our truck and before we could understand anything we were pulled out of the truck and brutally thrashed. We tried hard to save our faces, but could not as they were too many. They hurled abuses at us and also spoke bad about our religion. They even threatened to kill us.” recalls Rizwan, who is still recovering from the shock.
Cattle traders Rizwan, Ashu and Kamil are still unable to forget the night of April 22, when they came face to face with death where men, amidst slogan chanting, assaulted them near Kalkaji after their truck loaded with buffaloes was intercepted by a few cars.
The three traders have also alleged that the hooligans had also asked them to strip.
Ashu, who suffered a deep cut under his eye and was left bleeding, recalls the horror.
“They shouted ‘inki pant kholo’ (remove their pants) . I was so frightened that I became mute for some time. They even thrashed us in the presence of police,” Ashu said.
Ashu says that he was more concerned about his buffaloes even when they were admitted to the hospital.
“We are poor people and cattle trading is our business. We can’t afford to lose our buffaloes, so I even told the doctor to treat us fast so that we could check our animals. They (attackers) even snatched Rs 6,000-7,000 from my pocket,” said Ashu, who now has a scar under his right eye.
Rizwan, the driver, was more concerned about his mobile which he says was his most expensive possession. “I bought the mobile for Rs 16,000 and they snatched it. Do you know how I can get it back?” asks Rizwan.
The three young men say that had a female journalist and police not intervened, they could have been killed.
“I passed blood in my urine after the beating. My ribs still hurt. We thank God that we are alive,” said Kamil.
Ehtesham Hashmi, a Supreme Court lawyer said: “Tracking the cattle traders, beating and robbing them on various pretexts, is it not an organised crime? The police have pressed weaker sections (against the accused) like 323 and 341 under IPC. These are all bailable offences.”