New Delhi – Police in central India have arrested members of a Hindu group for assaulting a Muslim couple on suspicion that they were carrying beef.
The officials said on Friday in New Delhi that the couple who boarded a train in Harda, a district of the state of Madhya Pradesh, said they were attacked by members of cow protection group Gauraksha Samiti, because they objected to their luggage being searched for beef.
Allegations of cow slaughter have inflamed communal tensions in India over the past months.
Hindus, the majority in the country regard cows as holy and their slaughter banned in several Indian states.
Rambabu Sharma, District Police Chief, said a clash broke out after they called their relatives for help.
“Seven men from both groups have been arrested in connection with the incident.
He said the railway police had launched investigations into the matter.
Sharma said in 2015, a 55-year-old Muslim man was beaten to death by a Hindu mob in northern India over rumours that he and his family were consuming beef.
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Attacks over alleged cattle-killing and beef-eating have been a focus of a campaign by activists.
Muslims, the largest religious minority in India, make up an estimated 14 per cent of the country’s 1.25 billion inhabitants. (dpa/NAN)