Two arrested in West Bengal for beating up Muslim men carrying cattle for agricultural work

A group of men belonging to the Muslim community were beaten up in the Durgapur area of West Bengal when they were carrying cattle for agricultural work.

The incident occurred near the Gammon Bridge under the Coke Oven Police Station, where a group of men stopped a pickup van carrying cattle and assaulted those carrying them.

The video of the Muslim men being assaulted has gone viral on social media. In the video, the self-proclaimed cow vigilantes can be seen beating up the men, whose hands were tied up, and forcing them to do sit-ups while holding their ears.

“A case has been registered over the incident, and two of the miscreants have already been arrested. Raids are on to apprehend all those involved,” the West Bengal Police posted on social media.

The police assured that “nothing and no one will be allowed to dent our State’s tradition of inclusivity and harmony” and added that it demonstrates “zero tolerance for religious bigotry of any kind”.

Commissioner of Police (Asansol-Durgapur Police Commissionerate) Sunil Kumar Chaudhary said that members of the minority community were transporting cattle from Asuria market in Bankura district for agricultural purposes. 

The men were stopped by BJP youth wing supporters led by Parijat Ganguly. An FIR has been lodged against Parijat Ganguly, who spoke to local media after assaulting the men carrying cattle. The BJP youth wing leader, named in the FIR, was seen tying the hands of the people carrying cattle and forcing them to do sit ups.

While there have been instances of lynching in West Bengal, there have been very few instances of cow vigilantes in the State. Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Minakshi Mukherjee shared the video of the incident on social media and said, “RSS rule in Trinamool’s Bengal.”