BeyondHeadlines News Desk
Pune : The petition filed by Tehseen Poonawalla against Cow Vigilantes / Gau Terror came up for hearing before Supreme Court Court no 2 (listed as item no 4) on Friday. The latest case in Alwar in which Pehlu Khan was killed was cited. Tehsween Poonawalla had cited almost 10 cases including Akhlaq’s lynching and Una beating of Dalits. Notices were issued by the top court to the Centre and six states including Rajasthan, Gujarat , Haryana, UP, Karnataka, Maharashtra. Three weeks have been granted to them for a reply.
Poonawalla in a release issued to the national media stated “ We had approached the SC through a PIL admitted vide diary no 27263/16 seeking a range of actions against cow vigilante groups that are spreading terror in Dalits and minorities under the guise of “cow protection.” According to Poonawalla, the Gau Rakshak groups are a big challenge to law and order and the constitution just like SIMI and ISIS and need to be banned.
His petition further said that even the PM had declared that a majority of them 80pc are involved in criminal activities and use Gau Raksha as a shield to legitimise their illegal activities. But unfortunately there has been a rise in the terror perpetrated by these groups in the last 2 years. There has also been legal and political protection to these Gau Terrorists including the justification by Minister Naqvi and Rajasthan HM GulabChand Kataria.
From the flogging of Dalits in Una , Gujarat to the lynching of Akhlaq, Noman and Zahid and the murders in Latehar , Jharkhand and the recent killing of Minhaj Ansari and Pehlu Khan – all have been carried out in name of so called cow protection, it stated
Since the Modi government has been helpless against these groups linked to Sangh parivar we have approached the courts to impose a ban on them like it has on SIMI. Using religion to terrorise cannot be condoned, he added.
Unfortunately in states like Gujarat , Maharashtra and Haryana these vigilantes get protection or rewards from the state government and have thus earned legitimacy, Poonawalla added.
This state sponsored terror by Sangh affiliated groups will make us like Pakistan where Taliban and LeT were supported by the state apparatus too. We must therefore ban these groups and put their ring leaders in jail as PM Modi himself acknowledges that most (80%) are anti-social elements.” Poonawalla alleged.
