By Aakash Joshi
The death of Aryan Mishra – his senseless killing allegedly by Anil Kaushik (founder of Live for Nation, one of the many constituents of a Hindutva cottage industry) and four others – in Palwal, Haryana, is shocking. Unfortunately, this is not because a group of “gau rakshaks” chased him and his friends on a highway, or because they killed him. Murder and violence by such groups, of Mohammad Akhlaq and Junaid Khan and so many more, is the often-ignored corollary of “New India”. It is shocking because, with the death of Aryan Mishra, questions are finally being asked that, for too long, have been accepted as part and parcel of a diseased law and order machinery.
The first issue – which disguises a deeper malaise – is of language. Anil Kaushik and his ilk (think Monu Manesar) are referred to as rakshaks or “protectors” in Hindi and “cow vigilantes” by most English media. They are not, in fact, vigilantes. A vigilante, by definition, does not have official sanction. However, in state after state, the opposite is the case with the likes of Kaushik. Under BJP rule, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat and many other states have issued “gau rakshak” identity cards. As reported in this newspaper Kaushik has been associated with the Faridabad police, acting as witness and complainant, even as he posted videos on social media chasing and attacking people for cattle smuggling. It is important, then, to recognise that the gau rakshak is not a “vigilante” by any measure. Rather, he is for all intents and purposes a sub-contractor of the police department.
This story was originally published in indianexpress.com. Read the full story here.
