Jamia shooter out on bail uploads video of “Taking away the cow smuggler”

Jamia shooter, Rambhakt Gopal, out on bail uploaded a video on his Instagram handle with the caption “Taking away the cow smuggler”.

A Haryana court had granted bail to the Jamia shooter who was arrested last month for his anti-Muslim hate speeches at several mahapanchayats in the state where he spewed out violent, communally charged comments including asking people to kill Muslims or abduct Muslim women.

Kaushik Raj, Poet, Journalist from The Wire shares a string of videos and tweets revealing the incident. He writes, “Men with pistols can be seen taking away a man. They have full freedom to violate the law every day and still remain free.”  This occurred in Haryana with the Jamia shooter out on bail, in full swing again with full freedom to violate the law without impunity.  He could actually dare to upload it on Instagram with an address without any fear of repercussions.

Jamia shooter out on bail Rambhakt Gopal uploaded this video on his instagram with caption "Taking away the cow smuggler". Men with pistols can be seen taking away a man. They have full freedom to violate law everyday and still remain free.

Insta link: https://t.co/2ydAyjWY6Z pic.twitter.com/wWHImXQbFF

— Kaushik Raj (@kaushikrj6) April 24, 2022

In another video uploaded by Rambhakt Gopal on his Instagram handle, the gun is being pointed at people. On the video, it’s written– Gau Raksha Dal, Mewat road, Haryana.

In another video uploaded by Rambhakt Gopal on his instagram, gun is being pointed at people. On the video it's written– Gau Raksha Dal, Mewat road, Haryana.

Insta link: https://t.co/2AYOfDhB2m pic.twitter.com/KjqaqA8j6U

— Kaushik Raj (@kaushikrj6) April 24, 2022

Some of the comments on his post of "taking away the cow smuggler". People are cheering. pic.twitter.com/ShHlbyzVxf

— Kaushik Raj (@kaushikrj6) April 24, 2022

Screenshot of his post in case he deletes it. It was uploaded 20 hours ago with the caption "taking away the cow smuggler". It has 3542 likes and hundreds of comments cheering. pic.twitter.com/TUH8HGt4xv

— Kaushik Raj (@kaushikrj6) April 24, 2022

He said that he and Alishan Jafri had documented that Rambhakt Gopal regularly used to post videos of men ramming into vehicles and he used to post his photos with damaged vehicles and injured men, all in the name of cow protection.

Goons with Immunity to the Law

Goons are on the rampage with full immunity to the law.  In India, cow vigilante violence is the use of physical force in the name of “cow protection”. Since 2014, mob attacks targeting mostly illegal cow smugglers, but in some cases even licensed cow traders, have become prominent.  There is a debate on whether there has actually been any change in the number of such incidences, as Government Data points out to reduced communal tensions post-2014.

Cattle slaughter is banned in most states of India. Recently materialized cow vigilante groups, claiming to be protecting cattle, have been violent leading to a number of deaths. Cow-protection groups see themselves as preventing theft, protecting the cow, or upholding the law in an Indian state which bans cow slaughter.

According to a Reuters report, a total of 63 cow vigilante attacks had occurred in India between 2010 and mid-2017, most after Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014. In these attacks between 2010 and June 2017, “28 Indians – 24 of the Muslims – were killed and 124 injured”, states Reuter’s report.

There has been a peak in the number of incidents of cow vigilantism since the election of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) majority in the Parliament of India in 2014. The frequency and harshness of cow vigilante violence have been defined as “unprecedented”.  Human Rights Watch has reported that there has been a surge in cow vigilante violence since 2015. The surge is attributed to the recent rise in Hindu nationalism in India.

Many vigilante groups say they feel “empowered” by the victory of the Hindu nationalist BJP in the 2014 election. The Supreme Court of India in September 2017 ruled that each state should appoint a police officer in each district to take strict action against cow vigilantism.  However, the movement sparks on.  The court also expressed its concerns that animals were being illegally slaughtered such as the case of 200 slaughtered cattle found floating in a Bihar river.

How Can One Fight Communalism, Religious and Caste Wars When Top Political Leaders are Clapping It On?

How can one fight communalism, and religious and caste wars when top political leaders are clapping it on? Is it because Indian politicians are sympathetic and romanticize India’s extremist groups while the USA could identify the violence in the Ku Klux Klan and remove it?

Today, there are over 3.1 million Indian Americans living safely, successfully, and happily in the USA because a movement like Ku Klux Klan a white supremacist terror group was banned.  America did not hesitate to call the Ku Klux Klan a terrorist organization; however, certain political leaders and police fully support the cow vigilantes and people like the Jamia shooter and call them “nationalists”.

The BJP-RSS party must not forget that most of their children are studying or working in the USA and this is only possible because of the USA’s stand against hate and the banning of the KKK.