Faridabad shooting was a ‘misunderstanding’, no evidence for cow vigilantism theory, police say

More than a week after a teenager travelling in a car with his friends was chased and shot dead by a five-member gang in Faridabad, Haryana police on Tuesday claimed it was a case of mistaken identity and the shots were fired due to a “misunderstanding”.

Police said the background of the accused was being checked to find out if they belonged to any cow protection group, but added that there was no evidence to support this theory. The victim’s father, however, claimed that the main accused had confessed in police custody to shooting the teenager because he suspected him and his friends of being cow smugglers.

In the early hours of August 24, 19-year-old Aryan Mishra, a Class 12 student, had left his house in a car accompanied by friends, including two women. The accused, travelling in a sedan, tried to stop them but the teenager and his friends sped up. The accused overtook them near a toll plaza in Palwal after a chase of about 25 km and fired shots at them. Mr. Mishra sustained gunshot injuries on his shoulder and head. He was declared dead at the hospital.

Later, the Faridabad Crime Branch took over the case and arrested five persons: Anil, Krishan, Varun, Adesh and Saurabh, all from Faridabad.

“Thought for criminals”

At a press conference on Tuesday, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Aman Yadav claimed that the five-member group mistook Mr Mishra and his friends in the car for criminals and fired at them after a long chase. The police official said the accused and the victim did not know each other and ruled out any conspiracy or personal enmity as motives in the case.

Asked if the accused were cow protectors who had mistaken the victim and his friends for cow smugglers and therefore shot at them, Mr Yadav said their background was being checked but so far there was no evidence to suggest that they were associated with any such organisation. He added that both the accused’s version and the cow protector’s theory were being verified.

The accused were arrested and remanded in custody. The vehicle and the illegal weapon used in the shooting were seized. Mr Yadav said all four shots were fired by Mr Anil from his illegal weapon; two of them hit the victim.

“No information on cow smuggling”

Asked whether the accused had received any tip-off that cow smugglers were travelling in an SUV of the same model in which the victim and his friends were travelling, Mr Yadav said the police had not come across any such information during the course of their investigation, adding that no such tip-off was received by the police control room on the day of the shooting.

When asked why the victim and his friends were speeding when they were stopped, the police officer said one of the car’s occupants, named Shanky, was charged with attempted murder and he suspected the accused might be members of a rival gang.

“Defendant has confessed”

Contradicting the police version, the victim’s father, Siya Nand Mishra, said: The Hindu on the phone that the main accused, Mr. Anil, had confessed to stalking Mr. Aryan Mishra and his friends and shooting at them because he thought they were cow smugglers. This confession was made in his presence after Mr. Anil was arrested and taken into police custody on August 30, the victim’s father said.

Anil’s mother Rajesh Devi also told a Hindi news channel that her son was a “Gau Rakshak (Cow Avenger)” and chased the victim and his friends because he thought they were cow smugglers, but denied shooting them.

In the first information report, Mr. Siya Nand Mishra, the complainant in the case, had said that his son was shot dead by members of a gang who were enemies of his son’s friends. He said he was informed about the incident at around 3:30 am by the father of Harshit, another passenger in the car, who told him that it was an emergency situation and asked him to come to Palwal.