Lucknow: In Uttar Pradesh, police encounters in Jaunpur and Mathura led to the arrests of cow smugglers, including one wanted criminal with a bounty on his head.
In Jaunpur, a joint operation by the Machhli Shahr and Sujanganj police late Friday night targeted cow smugglers. During the early hours of Saturday, an encounter occurred where one smuggler was shot in the leg and captured, while his accomplice managed to escape. CO Vivek Kumar reported that the police were conducting checks when two individuals on a motorcycle attempted to flee. After a chase, the suspects opened fire on the police, prompting a retaliatory response. The injured smuggler was arrested and taken to a government hospital for treatment, with police recovering a motorcycle, a pistol, and live ammunition from the scene.
In Mathura, police arrested a wanted cow smuggler named Tariq during an encounter in the Dhaurera forest area under the Jait police station on Friday night. Tariq, from Deeg in Rajasthan, had been on the run since 2021 and had a bounty of ₹25,000 on his head due to allegations of killing cows, which had led to protests by cow protection groups. During the operation, Tariq was also shot in the leg and apprehended, with a police constable sustaining injuries in the exchange of gunfire. Both Tariq and the injured constable are receiving medical treatment. CO Sandeep Singh noted that Tariq’s arrest is a significant achievement, given his long evasion of law enforcement. Police recovered a pistol, cartridges, and a motorcycle from him as well. Investigations are ongoing in both cases.