Rakbar Khan case: Attack on 'cow smuggler' planned

JAIPUR/ALWAR: Almost 49 days after Rakbar Khan (31) was lynched in Lalawandi area of Alwar district's Ramgarh on July 21 on suspicion of cow smuggling, the Alwar police submitted on Friday a chargesheet before a local court in which it charged four accused, Parmajeet Singh, Naresh, Dharemendra and Vijay, with murder and claimed the accused had gone to the spot with a premeditated plan to catch "cow smugglers".

The chargesheet is significant as it states that the accused had gone to Dharmendra's farm on the evening of July 20 with a predetermined motive - catching "cattle smugglers" passing through Lalawandi area.



The investigation, police claimed, has also confirmed the involvement of a fourth accused, identified as Vijay, who was present at the crime scene and participated in beating up Khan. Vijay is currently evading arrest. Naval Kishore Sharma, the chief of a local cow vigilante group, is also being investigated by police.

The 25-page chargesheet corroborated that the police had indeed stopped for tea near Govdingarh Modh while the lynching victim was still in his vehicle. The cops halted there to wait for the tempo carrying Khan's two cows to arrive. Khan was kept at Ramgarh police station while the cops went to the gaushala to hand over the cows.

Police investigation has also found the involvement of Paramjeet Singh (28), a resident of Lalawandi who owns a farm; Naresh (25), also a resident of Lalawadni; Dharmendra Yadav (24), who was looking for employment; and Vijay; and has charged them under IPC Sections 302 (murder), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 341 (punishment for wrongful restraint) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention). While Paramjeet and Dharmendra were arrested on July 21, Naresh was arrested on July 22.

First person to alert cops also being probed

Naval Kishore Sharma, who had first alerted the cops and blamed them for Rakbar Khan’s death, is being probed.

The chargesheet filed by Alwar police is significant as it states that the four culprits had gone to Dharmendra’s farm on the evening of July 20 with a predetermined motive of catching “cattle smugglers”.

According to the chargesheet, when Khan was passing through the farm with his friend and two cows, they were first intercepted by Dharmendra. The four accused then surrounded Khan, while his friend fled to a nearby cotton farm.

The four then proceeded to beat up Khan with sticks. One Yogesh Kumar, who lived nearby the farm, woke up after he heard screams and alerted former sarpanch Dara Singh. Yogesh, who had gone to the crime spot, identified Paramajeet as both hailed from the same village.

“Yogesh called up sarpanch Dara Singh, who spoke to Dharmendra over the phone and asked him not to beat the person as he could get killed,” the chargesheet states, adding that Dara Singh had also advised the accused to alert the cops immediately.

Dharmendra informed Naval Kishore Sharma who reached the spot with Ramgarh police, accompanied by the now suspended ASI, Mohan Singh.

The chargesheet also admits that the cops had put Khan into the police jeep and waited for the truck carrying the cows to arrive. During this brief halt with the victim, cops also drank tea.

“The police team arrived at Ramgarh police station where Khan was kept. They then headed to a gaushala. When ASI Singh reached the police station, Khan complained of pain and was rushed to the hospital where he was declared dead,” the chargesheet said.