Mewat gang-rape: Victim alleges cow vigilantes involved

Chandigarh, September 10

One of the Mewat gang-rape victims has alleged that their attackers were cow vigilantes but Haryana Police on Saturday said no evidence had so far surfaced suggesting that the four accused arrested in the case were part of a cow protection group.

The family of the victims alleged that they had informed the police about the cow vigilantes but they chose to ignore it. “They (attackers) asked us ‘you eat cow meat’. We said ‘no’. They then said ‘you eat cow meat’. They said ‘we are killing you because you eat cow’.”

“We told the police this but they are not doing anything,” one of the two victims said.

A couple was murdered and two girls from the family allegedly gang-raped after the accused had barged into their house in the wee hours of August 25 in a village in Mewat district.

“I need justice. They have killed my son and daughter-in-law. They have gang-raped my grand-daughters. The way the police have behaved, we have no hope,” said a relative.

The police said the investigation is still on and so far they have not found any link with cow vigilantes. “So far there is no such evidence of them (accused) being cow vigilantes or being part of a cow vigilante group,” Inspector General of Police, South Range, Rewari, Mamta Singh, said.

Singh said the case had been recommended to be transferred to the CBI.

On August 28, Haryana Police had arrested four youths in this connection.

The accused had also ransacked the house, an isolated structure located in the middle of farmland, and fled with valuables, including cash. After committing the crime, the accused had tied the injured with ropes. Those living nearby had found the injured after which the police were informed. PTI