The family of a 33-year-old Muslim man has accused Uttar Pradesh police of forcibly arresting him on allegations of cow slaughter on Friday, September 19, threatening the family with ‘half encounter.’
Allah Meher Qureshi alias Majid, a resident of Khanpur village in Moradabad district, works in the buffalo dairy industry. On Friday, the Mundha Pandey police dragged him from his house on charges of illegal cow slaughter, despite his family’s efforts to resist.
According to Qureshi’s sister, Ajmaeen, he was sleeping when the police stormed our house. “Upon arriving, they first took out the DVR of the CCTV installed in our house. Then they forcibly dragged out Majid and took him away without furnishing a reason for the arrest,” she was quoted by Maktoob Media.
The family also alleged that the authorities misbehaved with the women and tore their clothes. “While we were trying to inquire about the reason for the arrest, they misbehaved with us, abused us and tore our clothes,” she said.
The family said that the officers openly threatened to carry out a ‘half encounter’ on Qureshi, a term often used in Uttar Pradesh to describe staged custodial violence resulting in non-lethal injuries.
“I kept pleading before them to spare him but the police didn’t listen. They instead abused us,” Qureshi’s mother Saira said.
Qureshi’s cousin, Majid, lodged a complaint at the Mundha Pandey police station on the day of the arrest, immediately after the incident, but an FIR has not been registered yet.
They claimed that the police have been trying to arrest Qureshi for some time now. Eyewitnesses said the police accused him of illegal cow slaughter without showing any warrant or proof of the act.
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When neighbours tried to intervene, police threw stones to disperse them.
Police also detained Qureshi’s wife on Saturday, September 20, along with eight other neighbours from their homes in Khanpur village.
Circle inspector at the Mundha Pandey police station confirmed that Qureshi was absconding in a cow slaughter case, which is the reason for his arrest, Maktoob reported.
While the CCTV footage was seized for evidence, the officer claimed, “They will raise more such allegations and we are doing our work.”
The family of the accused have demanded accountability and appealed to the higher authorities.
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