Two individuals apprehended following the discovery of cow meat in Madhya Pradesh’s Morena district have been subjected to the stringent National Security Act (NSA), police confirmed on Sunday.
Acting on a cow slaughter complaint, authorities seized beef and cow skin from a residence in Noorabad village’s Bengali colony on Friday night, according to an official statement.
Anipal Gurjar, a local resident, reported witnessing individuals slaughtering a cow and was allegedly assaulted when he intervened on Friday evening, stated Sub Divisional Officer of Police Adarsh Shukla.
Gurjar managed to escape and filed a police report, prompting a subsequent raid on the accused’s home where police found two sacks of bones, beef, and cow skin.
Four individuals, including two women, were apprehended on Friday, with a minor also detained, as per the official. Additional Superintendent of Police Arvind Thakur disclosed that Asgar and Retua were placed under NSA charges and remanded to custody on Saturday.
Following the incident, several right-wing groups protested and blocked roads on Saturday.
Police have filed a case against nine individuals under the MP Anti-Cow Slaughtering Act, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code for rioting, assault, and intimidation, Shukla added.
The punishment for cow slaughter in Madhya Pradesh can lead to up to seven years in prison.
Authorities reported that over six other suspects linked to the incident were on the run, prompting a search in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Thakur noted that those involved were migrant workers who had settled in Morena for labor, originating from Bihar and West Bengal. He stated that the situation was under investigation as several individuals had settled on a sports ground after migrating.
In a separate incident, the BJP-led state government invoked the NSA against two men accused of cow slaughter in Seoni, and reassigned the district collector and superintendent of police on Saturday.
