Dehradun, March 22 A young man, allegedly transporting cattle in Haridwar, was intercepted by a group of vigilantes who forcibly put him in their car and assaulted him.
Police took the five "cow protectors" into custody after a video of the assault, allegedly filmed and uploaded by them, went viral online.
The vigilantes claimed that the young man was taking the cattle for slaughter.
Following the circulation of the video, police identified both the man transporting the cattle and the vigilantes.
Acting on a complaint by Saddam, a resident of Bairagi Camp in the Kankhal area, police registered a case against the five men.
According to police, in his complaint, Saddam alleged that on the night of March 19, he was transporting two cows and a calf in a vehicle to Dinarpur when the accused youths intercepted him near the Kali Temple.
Accusing Saddam of taking the cows for slaughter, the youths forced him into their car and assaulted him, the complainant said.
Saddam further alleged that they threatened to kill him if he were ever seen transporting cows again.
Haridwar Superintendent of Police (City) Abhay Pratap Singh said immediate action was taken regarding the incident. A case has been registered against Pawan, Piyush, Rajan Chaudhary, Abhay, and Saurabh, and they have been taken into custody, he added.
