New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday issued notices to Gujarat, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan governments seeking a detailed reply on a petition regarding cow vigilantism.
Notably, all the above-mentioned states are led by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The apex court issued the notices to the state governments after hearing a plea seeking a ban on cow vigilante groups.
A bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra and AM Khanwilkar issued notices to Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh and asked them to file their reply within three weeks.
The bench has fixed the matter for hearing on May 3.
The SC also issued a notice to Karnataka government led by the Congress on the particular issue.
The counsel claimed that the ground-level situation in these states was worrisome as the cow vigilante groups were resorting to violence there.
The Supreme Court had on October 21, last year agreed to examine the plea which sought action against cow vigilantes who were allegedly indulging in violence and committing atrocities against Dalits and minorities.
The lynching of a Muslim man by cow vigilantes in Alwar in Rajasthan snowballed into a political row on Thursday with Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi saying no such incident, as was being presented, had happened and the Congress questioning his remark.
The three men arrested in connection with the brutal attack on 55-year-old Pehlu Khan and others on suspicions they were smuggling cows on Saturday were, meanwhile, remanded to police custody for a day by an Alwar court. Khan succumbed to his injuries on Monday night.
