Aryan Mishra, a Class 12 student, was killed on August 23.
It's been nearly two weeks since a Class 12 student was mistaken for a cattle smuggler and killed by five people in Haryana's Faridabad. While the Faridabad Police has maintained that it has no evidence so far to prove that the attackers were 'cow vigilantes' or associated with any organisation that is engaged in such work, NDTV spoke to the mother of the main accused, who has belied their claims.
Not only has the mother admitted that her son is a "cow protector" but she has also said that he was chasing the car in which the student was killed. Maintaining that her son is innocent, she said that he was not the one who fired the bullet that killed the student and held up his work in "cow protection" to illustrate his good behaviour.
The chain of evidence does not end there. NDTV went to the office of the main accused, where people said that he is well known as a cow vigilante, and also found YouTube videos posted by his organisation 'Live for Nation' where its members are seen engaging in activities related to cow protection. Some videos also show cow vigilantes chasing people in cars.
Mistaken Identity
On August 23, Aryan Mishra, a student from Faridabad was travelling in a Renault Duster with his friends, including two girls, when his car was chased by five men - Anil Kaushik, Varun, Krishna, Adesh, and Saurabh - who had mistaken them for cow smugglers.
The men tried to get the Duster to stop but Mishra and his friends chose to drive on because they thought goons had been sent after them. The men caught up with the Duster and opened fire, hitting Aryan twice, leading to his death. When the men saw the two girls in the car, they realised that they had made a mistake and fled.
Anil Kaushik, who is the main accused in the case, and the four others were later arrested by the Faridabad Police.
Not Cow Vigilantes?
Speaking to NDTV on Tuesday, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) Aman Yadav from the Faridabad Police said they have no evidence so far to indicate that Kaushik and the others are cow vigilantes or linked with any such organisation.
NDTV visited Kaushik's house in Faridabad the same day and spoke to his mother, who gave details not only about his work in "cow protection" but also the chase he was involved in on August 23.
"Yes, my son was chasing that car that night. He told me he thought there was a cow smuggler in the car. He also said that the first bullet was fired from the Duster. But he did not fire any bullets, I don't know whose bullet hit him (Aryan Mishra). My son is innocent. He protects cows and serves society," she said.
NDTV also saw two vehicles parked in the compound of Kaushik's home. The first, a Mahindra Bolero, had 'Gau Raksha Dal' written on it while the second was a cow ambulance with the names of Kaushik and 'Live for Nation' emblazoned on it.
The address for the office of 'Live for Nation' is Parvatiya Colony in Faridabad and when NDTV went there, it found the board outside said 'Kaushik Properties'. People in the area around the office also said Kaushik is a cow vigilante and pointed to a vehicle parked near the office which was used in such activities.