Wanted cow vigilante Monu Manesar caught

Cow vigilante and Bajrang Dal functionary Mohit Yadav, also known as Monu Manesar, was on Tuesday arrested from Manesar in Haryana, ending an eight-month-long hunt for a man first sought for the murders of two men from Rajasthan in February, and then for allegedly making remarks that were among the triggers for the communal clashes in Nuh on July 31.

- Debashish Karmakar

 

Manesar was sent to judicial custody for 14 days by a court in Haryana’s Nuh, and the Rajasthan police, probing the February murders, secured his custody after obtaining a transit remand from a court in Nuh, officers aware of the matter said. Meanwhile, police have increased security in and around Manesar region, even as local officials said there may be a mahapanchayat in the area on Wednesday protesting the cow vigilante’s arrest.

Police said that a pistol, three live bullets and a mobile phone were seized from Yadav, who is more popularly known by the nom de guerre that is a reference to his home town, Manesar.

Yadav first shot into the limelight when he was named among the prime accused in the murder of traders Junaid and Nasir, who were cousins. The two were found in a burnt vehicle in Loharu in Bhiwani on February 16, after allegedly being abducted and beaten, before their murder.

Still to be detained over the allegations, Yadav then posted a video laced with what many saw as communal incitement ahead of the July 31 Brajmandal Jalabhishek Yatra in Nuh. Clashes during the event led to the deaths of six people over three days, when the violence spilled over to neighbouring Gurugram.