Members of the Karnataka-based Hindutva organisation Sri Ram Sene were arrested by the police for setting ablaze a vehicle allegedly transporting beef and forcing the drivers to place cow heads over them. The drivers were also coerced to chant Jai Shri Ram slogans.
The incident occurred in the wee hours of Sunday, September 24, near Gauribidanur in Chikkaballapur district.
Police arrested 16 people, including seven who were transporting beef illegally.
According to a police statement, five vehicles were travelling from Andhra Pradesh’s Hindupur to Bengaluru when they were seized by right-wing workers. Upon discovering ‘beef’, they assaulted the drivers and set one of their vehicles on fire.
Soon after a mob started swelling. Police rushed to the spot to control the situation. Three cases have been registered – two at the Doddaballapur town police station and one at the cyber crime police station against a person who recorded the video and uploaded it on social media.
Is transporting beef illegal in Karnataka?
The Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act 2020 (KPSPCA) came into force in 2021 after amendments by the previous state government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party.
According to the Act, the transportation or slaughter of cattle as “cow, calf of cow, bull and bullock and he or she buffalo” is banned in the state.
The current Congress government had promised to repeal the amendments if voted to power during the recently held Assembly elections in the state. However, the amendments remain the same as today.
