Police bust alleged illegal cow slaughter racket in Vejalpur, three arrested; over 520 kg beef seized

In a major crackdown on alleged illegal cattle slaughter, the Vejalpur police have arrested three persons and booked six after raiding an open field near Sonal Cinema in the Vejalpur area of Ahmedabad, where officers claim an illegal slaughter operation was being carried out.

According to Vejalpur police, the raid was conducted on Tuesday morning following a tip-off received by the police control room that cattle were being illegally slaughtered in an open field behind Neha Flats, near Sonal Cinema.

Acting on the information, a police team from the surveillance squad, accompanied by panch witnesses, raided the spot and allegedly found several persons engaged in slaughtering cattle in a bush-covered area.

Police said three accused Mushtaq Tahirbhai Masariwala (28), Raez Inayat Hussain Sheikh (23) and Munaf Mohammadbhai Diwan (32), were apprehended at the scene, while six others fled.

The absconding accused have been identified as Zahiruddin Sheikh, Farhan, Ullfez alias Gattu, Zeeshan Zahiruddin Sheikh, Qureshi Mohammad Sajid alias Murgi, and Arif alias Goli.

During the raid, police allegedly seized around 520 kg of suspected cow meat, valued at approximately ₹1.56 lakh, and rescued a live white calf aged about one year, which officers said had been tied with a rope and kept without fodder or water, allegedly for slaughter.

The police also recovered knives, a weighing scale, a wooden-handled shovel, an auto-rickshaw, a Hyundai i20 car without registration plates, and a mobile phone. The total value of the seized property has been estimated at ₹4.66 lakh.

Officials said samples of the seized meat were sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory, whose report allegedly confirmed that the meat belonged to the cow species.

Investigators alleged that the operation was orchestrated by Zahiruddin alias Zahir Dabba, who had previously been arrested in similar cases and had allegedly called labourers and associates from outside the area to assist in the slaughter and transport of meat.

A case has been registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Gujarat Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act, 2017, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, and the BPMC Act.

Police official said further investigation, and efforts are underway to trace and arrest the absconding accused.