Maharashtra court cites doubtful evidence, acquits 3 in cattle slaughter case

A court in Maharashtra’s Alibag has acquitted three men, including one who died during trial, in a 2018 cattle slaughter case, saying the evidence presented “created serious doubt”. It said the police raid in which 75 kg of “cow flesh” was allegedly seized was not in accordance with statutory provisions and suffered from legal infirmity.One of the accused died during the pendency of the trial. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)Alibag residents Abdul Sayyad, Sharafat Faki and Idris Chaudhary were booked in the case in July 2018 under the Maharashtra Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act (MAPA), which provides for up to five years’ imprisonment. Sayyad and Chaudhary were released on bail while Faki died while the trial was pending.Chief Judicial Magistrate DM Zate cited material contradictions in the evidence of the prosecution witnesses regarding the collection of the seized meat samples. In the judgment delivered on Wednesday, the court said the raid was conducted in violation of the mandatory provisions under the MAPA.Police raided the residences of the accused and claimed to have seized 75 kg of “cattle” flesh, six knives of which two were sharp-edged, plastic sheets, and weighing scales. The prosecution told the court that the Forensic Sciences Laboratory had confirmed the seized samples were “cow flesh”.Defence lawyers Amin Solkar and Umang Shah told the court that the police examined five witnesses, none of whom were independent. They said one of the witnesses was a Vishva Hindu Parishad member, making his evidence unreliable. The prosecution said that alone could not be a reason to discard his testimony.The defence pointed out that police said the samples were collected from the residences of the accused, but a veterinary doctor told the court he examined the samples at a police station. Witnesses also differed on the number of boxes in which the samples were collected.The defence said the investigating officer was not authorised to search residential premises under the MAPA. The court held that the prosecution failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.