Yogi wants cow slaughter probed, calls it ‘conspiracy’
LUCKNOW: Chief minister Yogi Adityanath convened a meeting of senior officers, including chief secretary Anoop Chandra Pandey and director general of police OP Singh, on Tuesday to get feedback about the Bulandshahr violence in which a police inspector and a village youth were killed. He asked the officers to ensure strict action against all those involved in cow slaughter.
“The Bulandshahr incident was part of a larger conspiracy and all those involved in it should be arrested,” the chief minister said without elaborating.
The violence began around 11am on Monday after protests against alleged cow slaughter spun out of control and mobs of so-called cow vigilantes went on a three-hour rampage, clashing with security forces and setting vehicles and a police post on fire in Bulandshahr, 130 km from Delhi. Five officials were injured in the scuffle. In the melee, inspector Subodh Kumar Singh, who was part of the initial investigation into the 2015 murder of Mohammad Akhlaq in Dadri over allegations of cow slaughter, and a 21-year-old man, identified only as Sumit, died. Singh was first injured in the stone pelting by the mob and shot later. Sumit was part of the mob.
The chief minister will meet the widow of inspector Singh on Thursday.
Amid the furore, director general of police (DGP) OP Singh on Wednesday said the state police
saw a “conspiracy” behind the mob violence and was investigating why cow carcasses were found on December 3, three days ahead of the anniversary of the demolition of the Babri masjid.
“We are not only seeing it as a law and order issue. It was a conspiracy and we are probing why the particular day – December 3 – and place on which the cows were slaughtered and their remains spread in the field were selected,” Singh said, adding that two FIRs have been filed.
“One FIR is about cow slaughter and the other is on the violence. The probe is on on both the matters.”
Asked whether it was an attempt to vitiate the atmosphere ahead of the demolition anniversary, the DGP said, “We are looking at all angles, including the selection of place (for cow slaughter) and timing of the incident.”
“Police succeeded in containing what could have been a communal riot. The situation could have been worse if local police not responded timely as lakhs of people were present at the venue of ‘Tabligi Ijtema’ (congregation of Muslims), which was about 40 kilometres from the spot,” he said.
Though the congregation ended on December 2, over six lakh people were present on December 3 when the violence broke out, he said.
Amid a political furore over the killing of a police inspector and a youth in Bulandshahr in a case of mob violence, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday night ordered a thorough probe. Directions were issued for strict action against those involved in the alleged slaughter of cows.