Dadri again? Haryana's Palwal district erupts in violent clashes over 'beef'

Violent clashes broke out in Haryana’s Palwal district Thursday when villagers stopped a truck allegedly carrying cow’s meat. At least 10 people including policemen were badly injured when pro-cow volunteers took on the truck and the local police. The driver managed to escape but the co-driver got beaten up, police said. [caption id=“attachment_2153625” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Cow or a camel? Haryana erupts in violence over meat/ Reuters[/caption] Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said a probe has been launched. The district’s animal husbandry department told The Hindu that the now seized contentious meat is likely to be that of a camel and not cows. District sources have reportedly said that around 8 a.m a truck carrying meat from Mewat to Uttar Pradesh’s Aligarh via Palwal was intercepted by a large crowd and the driver’s helper got thrashed by the mob while the driver escaped. The crowd which attacked the truck alleged that the meat was indeed beef and hurt their ‘religious sentiments’, say reports. The mob reportedly damaged the truck, began hurling stones and beat up the policemen badly. Dr. Lalit Bhushan from Palwal’s District Animal Husbandry office told The Hindu that the meat appeared to be of a camel but the samples seized would be tested for confirmation. He said camel skin was also found in the truck. Police said that a rioting case as well as one under provisions pertaining to overloading and permit violation of meat was in the process of being registered. In Dadri’s Bishara village on the night of 28 December, a 50-year-old Mohammad Akhlaq was lynched and his son Danish (22) was brutally beaten up as ‘punishment’ for allegedly eating beef and ‘storing it’ in their refrigerator at home.