Hindu youth nearly lynched by cow vigilantes in Ujjain even as onlookers capture video

Special Correspondent

NewsBits.in

BHOPAL/UJJAIN: A Hindu youth was mercilessly beaten up by a group of cow vigilantes in Ujjain of Madhya Pradesh. A video of the assault has gone viral and has been released by a news agency.

The victim, identified as Appu Malviya, is a said to be a minor, though his age could not be confirmed. He was thrashed using belts, footwear and by kicks and punches even as a crowd kept watching without interfering. Many were seen shooting videos and photographs of the assault.

It was after a long time that one of the onlookers intervened the save the victim, who was nearly lynched by the group of assaulters.

A case was registered at local Jiwajiganj police station on the compliant of the victim against six youth including Chetan Sankhla, Vikas, Nilesh Sankhla and Shubham.

Three of the assailants including Chetan and Vikas have reportedly been arrested while police was on lookout of others. Police officials however sought to play down the cow angle to the assault and said the victim had a dispute over money with the assaulters.

However, the video footage clearly has reference to cow with the assailants asking the victim whether he would harm cows in future. Also one of them says ‘Gai hamari mata hai’ (cow is our mother).

Sources said that the assailants claimed that the victim youth had been earlier involved in killing/harming of cows.