Brother of lynching victim hit by car, he calls it ‘deliberate’

Saleem’s brother was killed, another injured by a mob over rumours of cow slaughter on June 18

The brother of a 38-year-old man, who was allegedly lynched by a mob in Hapur in June, has alleged that an unidentified vehicle tried to run him over near Ghaziabad’s Masuri town on Friday afternoon when he was travelling on a motorcycle with a police security guard. A FIR has been registered at the Masuri police station. Both men sustained injuries.

File photo of volunteers of the gau rakshaks on a highway to inspect trucks. (AFP FILE PHOTO)

According to the man, Saleem, he and the guard, Naseem Khan, were riding a motorcycle on NH-24 around 1.15pm and had crossed the Dasna toll. He said they had gone for some work and were returning to Pilkhuwa.

“We were close to a small canal and there was no traffic around. Suddenly, a speeding white Innova car hit our motorcycle. We were thrown a couple of feet in the air. Within seconds, the car sped away. It seems to be a deliberate attempt to injure me,” Saleem told HT.

“The police constable and I suffered injuries. It seems that some people are after me and are trying to restrain me from pursuing my brother’s case,” Saleem said.

On June 18, Saleem’s brother Qasim, a cattle trader from Pilkhuwa, and Shamiuddin, a resident of Madhapura Mustafabad, were allegedly attacked by a mob from the nearby Thakur dominated Bajhera Khurd area on suspicion of cow slaughter. Several videos, apparently showing the injured persons surrounded by a mob, had gone viral on social media after the incident. Qasim had succumbed to injuries while Shamiuddin was hospitalised for several weeks.

The Hapur police had lodged an FIR based on a complaint by Shamiuddin’s brother Mohammad Yaseen. The accused had been granted bail by a Hapur court in the case.

The Supreme Court had issued notices to the UP government on a plea filed by Shamiuddin seeking an independent SIT probe and transfer of investigation outside the state.

Meanwhile, the police said they are scanning CCTV footage to ascertain the nature of the accident. They said the constable accompanying Saleem has said that the incident was an accident and no foul play was involved.

“We are investigating the case and have lodged an FIR against unidentified persons. Our teams are scanning the CCTV footage of the route. Prima facie, the incident seems to be an accident,” Vaibhav Krishna, SSP, Ghaziabad, said.

Umesh Bahadur Singh, SHO, Masuri police station, said, “Saleem has mentioned in his complaint that the accident was a deliberate attempt to restrain him from pursuing the (alleged mob lynching) case.”