MADHYAPRADESH, 23 JUNE

The stringent National Security Act (NSA) has been invoked against two persons arrested after the recovery of cow meat from a village in Madhya Pradesh's Morena district, police said on Sunday. A villager,  Anipal Gurjar, complained that he saw some people slaughtering a cow and when he opposed it, he was attacked by them on Friday evening, Sub Divisional Officer of Police Adarsh Shukla said.

Gurjar, who managed to escape from the attackers, lodged a police complaint . The police later seized two sacks of bones and beef, besides the cow skin, from the house of the accused. Four persons, including two women, were arrested on Friday, the official said, adding a minor was also detained. Additional Superintendent of Police Arvind Thakur said two of the arrested accused, identified as Asgar and Retua, were booked under the NSA on Saturday and sent to jail. After the incident, workers of several right wing organisations staged protests and blocked roads on Saturday.

The police have registered a case against nine persons under the MP Anti-Cow Slaughtering Act, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and Indian Penal Code provisions for rioting, assaulting and intimidation. The offence of cow slaughter attracts imprisonment of up to seven years in the state. The official said more than six other persons allegedly involved in the case were absconding and search for them was on in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

ASP Thakur said those involved in the case were not natives of Morena district and settled here after coming for labour work. It was a matter of investigation as several persons settled on a sports ground after coming from Bihar and West Bengal. In another case, the state BJP government on Saturday invoked the NSA against two men accused of involvement in cow slaughter in Seoni, and transferred the district collector and superintendent of police.