Out on bail, 3 accused of assaulting 72-yr-old in train over beef suspicion to be arrested again

The trio are alleged to be part of a group of men who abused and assaulted Ashraf Ali Sayyed Hussain, 72, a resident of Jalgaon, who was travelling alone on the Dhule-CSMT Express last week. While the attackers accused Hussain of carrying beef, police said a preliminary probe found that he was carrying buffalo meat, which is not banned.

While the incident is reported to have taken place on August 28, the men were arrested on August 31, after a video of the assault was circulated on social media. They were, however, released on bail the next day.

“We recorded a supplementary statement from the complainant. He revealed that he had Rs 2,800 in cash, which was robbed by the attackers. He had not mentioned this initially. Following this disclosure, we have added Sections 311 (dacoity with attempt to cause death or grievous hurt) and 302 (uttering words with deliberate intent to wound religious feelings) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) to the case,” said Archana Dusane, Senior Inspector, Thane GRP.

“Since Section 311 is non-bailable, we again approached the court to obtain non-bailable warrants against the three. They will be re-arrested soon,” said a senior GRP officer, adding that one more suspect had been identified.

Earlier, the accused were arrested for bailable offences including unlawful assembly, rioting, wrongful restraint, causing hurt, criminal intimidation and intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace.

According to police, Hussain was targeted after an argument over a seat. The group of men allegedly abused Hussain, beat him up and demanded to see what he was carrying. Hussain, a butcher by profession, was carrying two plastic jars of raw buffalo meat. Accusing him of carrying beef, the men assaulted him. A video was recorded of the incident and shared on social media.

With the video clip going viral, triggering communal tension in Dhule, the GRP assembled a team to locate Hussain. The police then visited him in Kalyan, persuaded him to file a complaint, and registered an FIR.

The three accused, who were heading to Mumbai to participate in a police recruitment drive, were allegedly part of the group of attackers. Two are sons of State Reserve Police Force constables, while the third is the son of a labourer. They were apprehended from Dhule.

“We have contacted officials to seek details of their police recruitment applications. If they are selected, their criminal cases could lead to their disqualification during the police verification process,” said a senior GRP officer.

The police are also identifying others involved in the attack.