Police face backlash for allegedly shielding attackers while booking the victim and his son
Team Clarion
JALGAON – A 65-year-old man was brutally beaten and paraded semi-naked in Sarsoli, near Jalgaon city in Maharashtra on allegations of selling beef. The attack, allegedly carried out by self-proclaimed cow vigilantes, was filmed and widely shared on social media. Despite the brutality of the assault, the police registered a case against the elderly man while letting the perpetrators go free, sparking outrage and demands for action.
According to sources, Rauf Sheikh Burhan Qureshi, a meat seller from the Tambapur area of the city, was targeted on Wednesday morning when a group of men dragged him from his house near Ayesha Masjid. He was savagely beaten before being taken around the streets and then forced onto a tractor trolley in a semi-naked state at the town’s weekly market, where the attack continued in full public view.
His wife, Haseena Bi, described the horrific ordeal: “I received a call that my husband was being beaten. When I reached the spot with my son, we saw them mercilessly assaulting him. When we tried to intervene, they pushed us away. The attackers even misbehaved with me.”
Disturbingly, despite the viral video evidence, the police did not arrest the assailants. Instead, they registered a case against Rauf Sheikh and his son under charges of selling beef. This has led to accusations of police bias and failure to uphold justice.
In response, members of the Jalgaon-based Ekta Sanghtan, along with concerned citizens, met with District Superintendent of Police Dr Maheshwari Reddy, demanding immediate action against the attackers in line with Supreme Court directives on mob violence. “The law is clear — mob lynching in the name of cow protection is illegal. Why is action not being taken?” questioned Farooq Sheikh, a local activist.
He also alleged that Rauf Sheikh’s condition was so severe that he could not even be produced in court. “This shows the extent of the brutality he suffered,” he said in a social media post.
The delegation has warned of a sit-in protest outside the district police office if justice is not served. Meanwhile, legal experts have pointed out that the Supreme Court has explicitly directed law enforcement to take strict measures against cow vigilante violence, raising concerns over police inaction in this case.
The incident has reignited debates over mob violence and the misuse of cow protection laws in India, with calls for stronger enforcement to prevent such atrocities in the future.
