AHMEDABAD: A 29-year-old man who was allegedly beaten up by gau rakshaks or cow vigilantes in Ahmedabad four days ago died of his injuries at a hospital in Ahmedabad on Friday.
Mohammad Ayyub was allegedly attacked by a group of cow vigilantes on Tuesday while he and another man Sameer Sheikh were transporting a cow and a calf, police said.
At around 3 am on Tuesday, Mr Ayyub's car crashed into another on a highway resulting in the death of the calf, they said.
Also injured in the accident, Mr Ayyub tried to flee the spot but was chased by a group of men and beaten up, police said.
His associate Mr Sheikh, however, was saved by a policeman who was on duty nearby.
Later, a complaint was filed by three gau rakshaks against Mohammad Ayyub and Sameer Sheikh for illegally transporting the animals.
The three men were also among those that attacked Mr Ayyub, his family has alleged. But the police has said there was no evidence to suggest that they were at the spot.
"We had detained them as well but even Sameer could not identify them. Also so far we haven't got any evidence to establish their presence at the spot," said R R Bhagat, a senior police officer.
"We have filed an attempt to murder case against unknown people," he said. Efforts were being made to identify the people who had gathered at the spot based on security camera footage, he added.
But Mr Ayyub's family has alleged that Mr Sheikh had refused to identify the cow vigilantes under pressure.
"By filing the complaint, it's clear that they were at the spot. Even if they were transporting the animals illegally, they have no right to take law into their own hands," said Rozar Khan, Mr Ayyub's uncle.
Violence by self-styled cow protectors have made national headlines since the public flogging of four Dalit men in Gujarat's Una in July.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also joined the clamour against violence in the name of cow protection last month by calling such attackers "anti-social elements".
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