Authorities in Agar Malwa district of Madhya Pradesh have booked two men under the National Security Act (NSA) for alleged illegal transportation of cattle and disruption of public peace, a police official said on Friday, 8 February.
The incident comes on the heels of the Kamal Nath-led government invoking the stringent NSA against three persons accused of cow slaughter in Khandwa district.
"The two accused – Mehboob Khan, a resident of Lambikheda in Ujjain district, and Rodumal Malviya of Agar Malwa, were arrested on Thursday under the NSA for transporting cows illegally and disrupting public peace," Kotwali police station in-charge Ajit Tiwari said.
After their arrest, a court sent the duo to the central jail in Ujjain, he added.
According to police, Agar Malwa town had witnessed tension on 29 January in the bus stand area when the two accused were carrying cows in their vehicles. People had protested against them, after which the market was shut.
The duo was later booked by the police.
‘Involvement of Men Held in Past Cases Disrupted Peace’
"They were found to be involved in such activities in the past as well, which had led to disruption of peace in the area," Tiwari said.
The NSA was invoked against them by District Collector Ajay Gupta after Agar Malwa's Superintendent of Police (SP) Manoj Kumar Singh sent a report on the matter.
"In the past, four cases of illegal transportation of cows were registered against Mehboob and three cases against Rodumal, because of which the administration imposed the NSA against them," he said.
Talking to reporters in Mandsaur two days back in connection with the Khandwa case, senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh had said it is the police who decide which sections should be applied and invoking the NSA appeared unnecessary in that case.
Cong MLA Demands SIT, Collector's Transfer
Demanding the setting up of an SIT and transfer of the Khandwa district collector for invoking National Security Act (NSA) on three persons accused of cow slaughter, a Congress MLA has written to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath.
Bhopal Central MLA Arif Masood, in his letter sent on Friday, termed the NSA move as "one-sided", adding that the kin of the three accused had met him and had alleged that the collector had not heard their side.
He said cow slaughter was "shameful" but reiterated that the collector's move to invoke the stringent NSA was unjustified.
He demanded constitution of a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the case and the collector's transfer in order to have a "fair" probe.
Talking to PTI on Saturday, Masood said, "I have written to the chief minister and urged him to intervene in the matter. The action taken by police and district officials was on the basis of information given by an informer. The side of the accused should have been heard before invoking NSA." Masood claimed that minority community leaders from different parts of the country have also spoken to Congress chief Rahul Gandhi in this regard.
Earlier last week, authorities had slapped the NSA on three accused, identified as Shakeel, Nadeem and Azam, for allegedly killing a cow at Khandwa.
Justifying the action, Khandwa Superintendent of Police Siddharth Bahuguna had said Nadeem, alias Raju, was a habitual offender and had been held earlier in a cow slaughter case as well as other criminal cases.
Khandwa is a communally sensitive area and such an incident might affect its peace and harmony and therefore, he had said, such a move was made against the three.
According to Moghat Police Station in-charge Mohan Singore, acting on a tip-off that few persons were indulging in cow slaughter, a team raided Kharkali village nearby on 1 February.
While the accused fled, a large knife and beef were seized from the spot, he said.
The three were arrested on 2 February and Khandwa collector Vishesh Gadpale later invoked NSA against them, Singore had informed.
(With inputs from PTI)
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