Rajasthan court to pronounce verdict in Pehlu Khan lynching case today; trial concluded on 7 August after 40 witnesses deposed

A court in Rajasthan’s Alwar is likely to pronounce its verdict in the Pehlu Khan lynching case on Wednesday. The court of the Alwar additional district judge will pronounce its ruling after having heard the testimonies of more than 40 witnesses, including the 55-year-old victim’s sons. [caption id=“attachment_4628581” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Facebook/ @PoliceRajasthan[/caption] Khan, a resident of Haryana’s Nuh village, was beaten up by cow vigilantes near Behror in Rajasthan on 1 April 2017 for allegedly transporting cattle without permission, even though he had receipts to prove that he had purchased the cows from a cattle fair. He succumbed to his injuries on 3 April. Seven of the accused — Vipin Yadav, Kalu Ram, Dayanand, Ravindra Kumar, Yogesh Kumar, Bheem Rathi and Deepak alias Golu — are being tried in the additional district judge’s court, while two other accused, who were minors at the time of the incident, are being tried by a juvenile court. Rajasthan Police had arrested the accused based on video evidence under sections 147, 323, 341, 302, 308, 379 and 427 of the IPC. Reportedly, Rajasthan Police had given a clean chit to the six accused named by Khan in his statement before his death. The police let the accused go based on “statements of the staff of a cow shelter and mobile phone records,” India Today reported. Meanwhile, the police also charged Khan under Section 6 of the Rajasthan Bovine Animal (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation of Temporary Migration or Export) Act, 1995, and his sons under Sections 5, 8, and 9. The move had resulted in criticism from various sections for the then-BJP government led by Vasundhara Raje in Rajasthan, The Indian Express reported. With inputs from agencies