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Journalism of Courage
The passing of buck between Chief Ministers Ashok Gehlot (Rajasthan) and Manohar Lal Khattar (Haryana) over Mohit Yadav a.k.a Monu Manesar tells the story in a way about how the alleged cow vigilante has continued to escape police action despite being named in at least two FIRs across the two states, allowing him most recently to share a video that is believed to have been one of the provocations for the Nuh violence.
On Thursday, Gehlot accused the Haryana government of “non-cooperation” in the investigation into the February murders of Nasir and Junaid, Rajasthan residents who were allegedly killed by cow vigilantes and their bodies dumped in Haryana. Monu Manesar was initially named as the prime accused in the case, but as he remained “absconding”, the investigation against him was kept “pending” when the chargesheet was filed.
In the six months since, the Rajasthan Police has managed to make three arrests in the Junaid-Nasir murders, leaving 27 “absconding”, including Monu. Meanwhile, he continues to be the head of the Gurgaon district’s informal ‘Cow Protection Force’, and a member of the Bajrang Dal.
Gehlot Thursday blamed Haryana for the Rajasthan Police not being able to arrest them, and accused Khattar of trying to pass the blame regarding Monu to Rajasthan, as it had not been able to control the Nuh violence.
Gehlot’s statement came a day after Khattar said at a press conference: “As far as Monu Manesar is concerned, the last FIR was filed against him in Rajasthan. We have told the Rajasthan government that we are ready to help them in locating him.” Khattar added that “since the Rajasthan Police is searching for him, we don’t have inputs on his whereabouts”.
It was in May that the Rajasthan Police filed a chargesheet in the Nasir-Junaid case, naming three persons, while keeping the investigation “pending” against 27.
The chargesheet named Rinku Saini, 32, Monu Rana alias Narendra Kumar, 31, and Gogi alias Monu, 27. While Rinku was arrested on February 17 from Haryana, the other two were arrested on April 13 from an isolated hilly area in Dehradun.
Sources in the Rajasthan Police said that all the 30 named in the FIR are from Haryana. They also claim that they had formed special undercover teams to pursue leads in Haryana’s Ferozepur Jhirka, Jind, Bhiwani, Karnal, Sonipat, Panipat, Kaithal and Yamuna Nagar, apart from several districts in Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, along the Nepal border, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. But that, “in the absence of cooperation by the Haryana Police”, 27 remain “missing”.
Meanwhile, soon after the searches began, the Rajasthan Police found itself facing a police complaint in Nuh over its action against one of the accused. The mother of the accused alleged that on February 17, around 3.30 am, 30-40 unidentified people clad in Rajasthan Police uniform and some other people in plainclothes had barged into their house.
“They enquired about my son and said that he claims to be a cow vigilante. When I told them that my son was not at home, they hurled abuses and assaulted me and my pregnant daughter-in-law…They kicked my daughter-in-law in the stomach, due to which she experienced severe pain. She was taken to hospital, where she delivered the baby, but it died,” she said in a police complaint.
She also claimed that the men took away two other sons of hers.
The Nuh police ordered an inquiry, with the body of the stillborn baby exhumed and an autopsy conducted. An FIR was registered on February 21 against “30-40 unidentified officials of Rajasthan Police” under IPC Sections 148 (rioting), 149 (unlawful assembly), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 452 (house-trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restraint), 312 (causing miscarriage) and 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty).
Rajasthan Police officials refuted the allegations, stating that they conducted the probe at all times with Haryana Police by their side, and that no human rights violations had taken place. The Rajasthan Police also said that its personnel did not enter the house of the said accused.
Asked about the status of the case on Friday, the Nuh police said the investigation was “ongoing”.
As Monu was being investigated, another case against him came to light, over a February 6 clash in Haryana’s Pataudi between two communities following an elopement. Four people had suffered injuries in the incident, including Mohin Khan, 20, who suffered a gunshot wound.
In his complaint, Mohin’s father Mubin Khan stated that his son was out to purchase groceries when an unknown person shot at him. Mohin’s uncle alleged that there were Bajrang Dal members around carrying guns. The police initially booked unknown persons under Section 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC and under the Arms Act. After a video surfaced purportedly showing Monu firing a gun near the spot, his name was added to the FIR.
In that case too, as per the Gurgaon police, Monu has remained “untraceable” despite searches to arrest him.
In June, while still officially absconding, Monu met The Indian Express at a gaushala in Manesar, Haryana. He denied he was evading police, and said he had been on a pilgrimage to Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan. “I haven’t got a notice from any police, Rajasthan or Haryana. If they call me for questioning, I will cooperate,” he said.
On July 29, just ahead of the Brijmandal Jalabhishek Yatra in Nuh carried out by the VHP, a video surfaced of Monu on WhatsApp, where he said: “I will be at the yatra in person and my whole team will also be present.”
Officials believe that this stirred tempers, which were already running high in the region over the murders of Nasir and Junaid, and the failure to arrest the accused. Monu was seen as throwing a challenge to the other side.
After the Nuh violence, Monu surfaced on Aaj Tak TV channel to blame Congress Muslim MLAs for the incidents.
Asked about Monu on Thursday in relation to the Nasir-Junaid case, Bharatpur Range IG Rupinder Singh said: “The investigation is on, since he is a named accused.” Asked about action against Monu in the Pataudi incident, the Haryana Police answer was similar. Manesar DCP Manbir Singh said: “The investigation is on.”
On action they had taken to find him, the Rajasthan Police refused to share details.
