New Delhi: Nasir and Junaid, who were killed on the suspicion of cattle smuggling, were burnt by the accused after they were advised by “senior” and “influential” cow vigilantes, including Monu Manesar, The Tribune reported quoting Anil Multhan, one of the eight accused in the case.After the accused kidnapped the duo, they brutally thrashed them and handed them over to Ferozepur Jhirka police in Haryana, who turned them away. They did not intend to kill the duo, said Multhan, but the physical assault committed against them went out of hand, resulting in their death. At this stage, the accused reached out to cow vigilantes over the phone and WhatsApp and were advised to burn the bodies to destroy forensic evidence and to weaken the case in court, Multan added.Multhan, who was arrested in Gurugram, is in the custody of the Deeg police till October 12.A senior officer from Rajasthan Police confirmed Multan’s version. “They burnt the bodies after much deliberations with some of the most celebrated faces of vigilantism. They had not anticipated the consequences of the thrashing and panicked. They could see both dying, and that is when they contacted the vigilantes of Haryana for guidance. They decided to burn the bodies to ensure that no forensic evidence was left. We are probing the extent of the role of these vigilantes,” the official told Tribune.Also read: Ground Report: How Junaid and Nasir Were Killed by ‘Cow Vigilantes’According to Multan, reported earlier by The Wire, cow vigilantes in Haryana and Rajasthan have been extorting money from cattle smugglers to allow them safe passage through the states. These vigilantes ran a close-knit group and tracked the movement of smugglers and trucks carrying cattle.Multan’s statements highlight that these groups closely monitored smuggler activities and demanded payments from them. Failure to pay often resulted in violence and police intervention. It is this extortion money that helped these groups to fund their activities.“Extortion is the key source of income of these gangs. They have a strong network in Mewat. They have lists of cattle smugglers and seek payment from them for allowing their trucks to pass through the area. If they fail to pay, they are thrashed and handed over to the police,” the official said.The official went on to add that the payments depended on the number and type of cattle being smuggled and the area they were caught.Nasir and Junaid, according to the Multhan, earned the wrath of the accused for helping smugglers pass through the area without paying the extortion money.Although the plan of the accused was to catch the duo red-handed and then hand them over to the police, they could not do so as they could not get hold of the truck smuggling cattle. It was then the accused thrashed them, according to the official.With Multan in custody, Rajasthan Police expect him to reveal more about the case as well as the cow vigilantism in the area.The killing of the duo has become a major political issue in Rajasthan, which is going to polls next month. It is expected to dominate electoral discourse, especially in the Mewat region, which comprises Alwar, Deeg, and Bharatpur districts.According to the daily, there have been protests in the region against Rajasthan Police handing over Monu Manesar to Haryana Police. Manesar, who was arrested by the Haryana Police in connection with violence in Nuh, was handed over to Rajasthan Police. He was then taken into Haryana Police custody on October 7.The Rajasthan Police is also on the lookout for other accused in the Nasir-Junaid murder case. It is expected to hand over a list of cow vigilantes to the Haryana Police in the coming days.
