The accused are yet to reveal where exactly they were supposed to deliver the animals, said police. (File)
FIVE BUFFALOES allegedly died of suffocation when 102 of them were being ferried in four mini trucks from Rajasthan and Gujarat on Sunday. Following this, 12 people have been arrested and the owners and managers of two slaughterhouses in Aligarh booked.
Police said the owners and managers, who have not been named in the FIR lodged at Mandrak police station, were attached with Allana and Al Hamd Agro meat factories. Along with them, 12 others also been booked under sections 429 (mischief by killing or maiming cattle) and 120 B (conspiracy) of the IPC and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
Aligarh Rural Assistant Superintendent of Police Yash Veer Singh said: “They were ferrying buffaloes in a poor condition, causing death to five animals. The accused said they were ferrying animals for two meat factories — Allana factory and Al Hamd Agro — located in Aligarh City… They claimed that the factory owners and managers had asked them to bring as many buffaloes as possible and that they would purchase them even if the animals died during transportation.”
“We will verify the allegations against the owners and the managers from local government veterinary doctors. We will also scan the CCTV footages of both factories to verify if dead animals too were sold from there,” he added.
Mandrak police Station Officer (SO) Sanjeev Dubey said they are yet to contact the owners and the managers of the two factories. “Those arrested have not revealed the names of the owners and the managers,” he added.
“Following a tip-off early Sunday, we caught four vehicles near Ajana police outpost and found 102 buffaloes stuffed inside. While three of the animals were found dead, two were unconscious… they died a few hours later… Twelve people, including the drivers of the four vehicles, were arrested,” the SO said, adding that the rescued animals have been handed over to the locals.
Around three hours later, the police caught two vehicles carrying 34 buffaloes in a similar condition at Thana crossing in Mandrak area. Four persons were arrested, who also claimed that were ferrying the animals from Mathura to Aligarh. “They are yet to reveal where exactly they were supposed to deliver the animals,” Dubey said. The four have been booked under Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
When contacted, All India Abattoirs Welfare Association chairman Shakeel Qureshi said factory owners or managers are not responsible for the incidents since the animals had not reached the factories. “There is no evidence that the animals were being taken to these factories… The state government is harassing businessmen by getting FIRs lodged on false charges,” he alleged.
Despite repeated attempts, owners and managers of both the factories could not be contacted for comment.
