Police Shootings of Alleged Cow Smugglers in India Spark Concerns Over Impunity, Bias

An Associated Press investigation has revealed that police in India's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, have conducted hundreds of near-identical shooting encounters, many targeting Muslims accused of cow smuggling. These incidents, publicized by police as acts of self-defense during crackdowns on crime, are raising alarms among activists, opposition leaders, and local judges who argue they constitute extrajudicial punishment and intimidation.

The Center for the Study of Organized Hate compiled records of nearly 650 cases since 2020 where suspects accused of cow smuggling were shot and injured by Uttar Pradesh police. An independent review of over 200 cases indicated that the overwhelming majority involved Muslims. In a consistent pattern, suspects were shot in the leg, typically below the knee.

Uttar Pradesh police official Amitabh Yash stated that officers are instructed to act only in self-defense and that the state's police have injured fewer suspects per capita than police in the United States. He added that there is no directive to shoot suspects in the leg and that such patterns would be investigated if a formal complaint were filed. "The police must be questioned for every action they take. Every action is open to scrutiny, whether it is a death or an injury," Yash said.

The tactic, known locally as "Operation Langda" or "Operation Lame," is employed against suspects of cow smuggling, theft, and rape. Cow smuggling carries particular significance in India, where cows are revered by many Hindus and cow protection laws are politically sensitive.

This surge in police shootings has occurred alongside a political emphasis on tougher policing under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his allies in Uttar Pradesh. The state is led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, a prominent figure in Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party. Official data obtained by the AP shows that from March 2017 through mid-October of the current year, 316 suspects were killed in encounters in Uttar Pradesh, with 110 identified as Muslim. This represents a higher proportion of Muslims than their estimated 20% share of the state's population. Over the same period, 12,890 suspects were injured, and 18 police officers were killed.

Activists contend that the practice is spreading to neighboring states governed by the BJP, including Haryana, Bihar, and Uttarakhand.

Human rights advocates question the legitimacy of many police shootings, citing instances where suspects allegedly posed no threat. The consistent pattern of leg wounds has led some to doubt the claims of self-defense, with a professor of forensic medicine stating that such shots are unlikely to be delivered horizontally and without hitting bone to a fleeing or resisting individual. "It’s not a shot in defense," he said. "It’s a deliberate close shot of a person."

The Allahabad High Court has publicly criticized the increase in police shootings, warning that officers cannot usurp the justice system and noting that police are often failing to adhere to required reporting and investigation procedures. One judge described the practice of firing at the legs of accused persons as having "seemingly become a routine feature" and "wholly impermissible" under the rule of law.

Despite judicial concerns, legal action has been slow. In 2018, a human rights group presented evidence of encounter killings and requested an independent investigation, but the case remains pending, with police shootings surging in the interim.

Families of men shot by police, who spoke anonymously due to fear, described sons and nephews being injured, left unable to work, and families resorting to loans or aid to survive. One woman said her son, who traded buffalo, was shot in both knees and is now "completely broken."

An analysis by the Center for the Study of Organized Hate found that nearly 93% of suspects injured in cow-smuggling-related encounters were Muslim. The center's executive director stated that these findings "clearly show that the state institutions, particularly the law enforcement, are increasingly being used as the vehicles for the persecution of Muslim minority."

Critics argue that the focus on cow smuggling and related shootings is part of a broader political agenda to advance Hindu nationalism, with tough-on-crime policies perceived as targeting the Muslim minority. Police official Yash, however, attributed the high proportion of Muslim suspects to their significant involvement in the cattle trade and asserted that police do not target specific groups.

Official data on the religious composition of the police force in Uttar Pradesh has not been updated in over a decade, but a 2013 report indicated that Muslims were underrepresented at 4.8% of the force.

The consequences of these shootings have been described as lasting, with one man expressing fear that others might be targeted "in the name of cows."