Cattle smugglers bane of police, ‘gau rakshaks’ in Kurukshetra

Nitish Sharma

Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, December 23

Cattle smugglers carrying illegal and country-made pistols are a cause for concern for the police and members of the Gau Raksha Dal here.

Girish Arora, a member of the Gau Raksha Dal in Ladwa, said: “Cattle smugglers carrying firearms have become a problem for members of cow protection groups. They are targeted when they try to stop any vehicle carrying cattle.”

Last week, cattle smugglers opened fire on Arora and his friend near Ban village of Ladwa when they indicated a vehicle to stop. They escaped the attack and complained to the police.

That was not the first incident, Arora said. “We don’t get much support from the police. Many a times, the police don’t act on the tip-offs received from us.”

“Cow protection groups are doing what the administration needs to do. The state government should frame a police to protect cow protectors,” he added.

Superintendent of Police Simardeep Singh said, “To stop the menace of cattle smuggling, patrolling has been increased. Policemen have been asked to carry long-range weapons and return fire when attacked.”

He asked members of the Gau Raksha Dal not to set up any barricade without the police support. “For better coordination between the police and Gau Raksha Dal, DSP-rank officers hold meetings with cow protectors regularly. Efforts are being made to strengthen the liaisoning between them,” the Superintendent of Police added.