2 min readJammuUpdated: Aug 7, 2026 09:50 PM IST
Three people were injured — one seriously — after they were allegedly attacked over suspicion of cattle smuggling in Jammu’s Ramban. An FIR in the case names 17 people.
According to the police, Shakeel Ahmed and his three employees — Gafoor, Altaf and Fika — were attacked on the evening of August 4 while driving 17 bovines from Ramban’s Kariya Post to Maitra Govindpura.
In his complaint, which forms part of the FIR, Shakeel Ahmed said that when the vehicle reached Bilawat village, it was stopped and they were wrongfully restrained, abused, assaulted and beaten with sticks over suspicion of cattle smuggling. He added that the animals had been entrusted to him.
“While the assailants also snatched two mobile phones from us,” the complaint says.
While locals claim the assailants were part of a cow vigilante group, police say this is still under investigation.
This is the second attack over allegations of cattle smuggling earlier this year. A youth, Tanveer Ahmad Chopan, died on April 12 this year after he jumped into Bishlari nullah in Ramban district to escape a group of alleged cow vigilantes while he was transporting a cow and two calves from Jammu.
Four people were arrested by a Special Investigation Team of the police following protests over the incident. Chopan’s body was recovered from the nullah after several days.
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Police said one person was in a serious condition and is currently admitted to the Government Medical College and Hospital in Jammu. The FIR invokes charges of wrongful restraint, voluntarily causing hurt, theft, criminal intimidation and rioting, among others. No arrests have been made in the case.