5 Muslim men from Haryana have been caught while trying to smuggle cattle from Madurai to Kerala. They reportedly targeted Jallikattu bulls and sold them for slaughter. They tried to murder a cop when the latter tried to stop the truck.
In the recent past so many cattle thieving incidents were reported from the outskirts of Madurai in Tamil Nadu. People filed complaints of missing cattles, especially Jallikattu bulls in many places. The most famous 3 Jallikattu events are held in Madurai and thus many in and around the city raise Jallikattu bulls as a hobby and continuing legacy.
Cops were on the lookout for the thieves and Special Sub Inspector Dhavamani who was on duty at the check post in Dindigul Road received information that a mini truck carrying stolen cattle was on its way to Madurai city. He, along with two other cops, tried to stop the vehicle when it reached the check post, but the driver sped up and hit the barricades and the cop in an obvious attempt to murder him. Dhavamani was injured and underwent medical treatment.
He filed a complaint against the thieves based on which a case was registered and a special team was formed to trace the criminals. They collected CCTV footages near the check post and went through them. On January 22, they spotted the same minitruck speeding on the Kosakulam-Kulamangalam road and caught 5 men involved in the crime.
They were identified as A Nasir, 23, R Irfan, 26, J Zubair, 33, R Shakul, 23, and A Hakmudheen, 42 from Haryana. The gang stole cattle from Madurai and adjoining districts and smuggled them through Oddanchatram in Dindigul and Dharapuram in Tirupur to be sold for slaughter in Kerala. Tamil media reports say that they targeted Jallikattu bulls for smuggling.
The vehicle used for smuggling, without a number plate, was seized with Rs 11,000 cash. Police are still looking for 2 more members of the gang. While it was Muslims who were involved in cattle smuggling, Tamil media reports generalised them as North Indians furthering the North-South hatred and hiding the religious nature of the crime.
