ALWAR: Rajasthan government and the kin of the deceased on Thursday filed two appeal petitions against a sessions court’s decision of acquittal of all six accused in the Pehlu Khan case.
On August 14, almost two years after Pehlu Khan was lynched by a mob of cow vigilantes, the Alwar Sessions Court acquitted all the six accused in the case, giving them the benefit of doubt.
“The appeal against the Pehlu Khan verdict was filed at the Rajasthan High Court on Monday,” Additional Advocate General Major R P Singh told The Indian Express.
Trashed To Death For Transporting Cows
Pehlu Kahn (55) was a dairy farmer from Haryana’s Muslim-dominated Nuh district. On April 1, 2017 he was thrashed by a mob when he was transporting cattle in a pickup van on suspicion of smuggling cows from Rajasthan to Haryana, which led to his death on April 3, 2017 in a government hospital.
Khan had told the crowd he was bringing the cows from a cattle fair, but they had screamed that he was planning to slaughter the cattle for beef.
The attack on Pehlu Khan and his two sons in the western state of Rajasthan by a suspected mob of cow vigilantes caused public outrage and demands for swift action.
Attack Recorded Went Viral
The incident was recorded on camera too. It showed Pehlu Khan being beaten by an aggressive crowd. Videos shot on mobile phones showed Khan begging for mercy as the crowd set upon him after stopping his truck with cows in the back. He died but his sons survived.
Nine people were held accused in the case which also included three minors who were out on bail.
In 2017, the Rajasthan police had given a clean chit to the six people named by Pehlu Khan in his dying statement.
The remaining three accused are minors and are being tried in a juvenile court.
Govt Form SIT To Reprobe The Case
Following the verdict, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot led Rajasthan government decided to form a special investigation team to reprobe the Pehlu Khan lynching case.
The government appointed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to identify the loopholes in the previous investigation.