Solidarity or pressure? Why have some Muslims from Ramgarh, Rajasthan become 'gau rakshaks'?
'Before our Hindu brothers can accuse them, it is our responsibility to ensure that we prevent such anti-social elements in our own country.'
Ramgarh in Rajasthan is about 180 kilometres from Alwar, where the mob killing of 55-year-old Pehlu Khan has come to represent the unchecked violence of self-styled cow vigilantes against Muslims.
In Ramgarh, though, it is a sizeable Muslim community that has been actively checking for cow-smuggling, and have turned into “gau rakshak”s themselves.
Maulana Mohammed Israel, the head of the Ramgarh Jama Masjid, is the driving force behind it. “According to Islam, we are allowed to rear cattle for their milk but not to be cruel and inhumane,” explains the imam in the video above.
His objective is to encourage young Muslim men in the area to maintain peace with Hindus and not tarnish the image of their religion.
“Before our Hindu brothers can accuse them, it is our responsibility to ensure that we prevent such anti-social elements in our own country.”
As the host of the video Doctor VC says, “They (the Muslim gau rakshaks) did not like their community to be labelled as ‘beef-eaters’ or ‘cow-killers’.”
The sarpanch of the village can be seen emphasising the importance of cows in the dairy business.
Located on the border of Rajasthan and Haryana, the small town of Ramgarh has an active cow vigilante group headed by Nawal Kishore Sharma, who cites the conservative outlook of his religion in the video below.
The members of this group are teachers, lawyers, marble sculptors, politicians and other professionals who also claim to be watching out for smugglers transporting cows for sale and slaughter. Many also work at one of the two cow shelters in Ramgarh where the rescued cows are taken.