Three days after a mob of cow vigilantes attacked Tamil Nadu government officials transporting bovine animals to their State at Barmer in Rajasthan, a police team escorted the convoy of cattle and took them to the Rajasthan-Gujarat border, 150 km from Barmer, in the early hours on Wednesday.
The convoy of five trucks, carrying 50 cows and calves of the prized Tharparkar breed, will pass through Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka before reaching Tamil Nadu. The Gujarat police took over the responsibility of the convoy's protection from their Rajasthan counterparts on Wednesday. The Tamil Nadu Animal Husbandry Department officials, attacked by cow vigilantes on Sunday night on suspicion of cattle smuggling, had reportedly sought police protection for returning to their State.
They had purchased the cattle in the Jaisalmer district at a cost of ₹50 lakh under the Rashtriya Gokul Mission to improve their livestock breeds.
Truck drivers thrashed
The mob of cow vigilantes had thrashed the truck drivers and cleaners and tried to set one of the trucks on fire. The police have since arrested eight persons in connection with the incident, while disciplinary action was taken against seven policemen for dereliction of duty.