MANDYA: KR Pet police along with volunteers of Prani Daya Sangha, an animal welfare organisation, rescued 44 cattle at KR Pet town in the district on Friday, when they were being allegedly taken to a slaughterhouse.
A majority of the rescued cattle were calves, with one of them born just a day ago and others were 15-20 days old, sources said. Two people including the owner of the goods vehicle by which the animals were being transported, have been arrested.
Police said one of the arrested is identified as Yogesh from Kikkeri in Mandya. The duo was transporting the cattle from Channarayapatna in Hassan district to a slaughterhouse in Mysuru. The cattle were stuffed into the vehicle, with the legs of each of the animals tied.
Lokesh from Channarayapatna, the suspected kingpin in the case, had allegedly engaged Yogesh for the task, by promising him `3,500. As per the information provided by Lokesh to Yogesh, the latter was supposed to wait for a party at Kesare in Mysuru to hand over the cattle, the sources said. However, much before the cattle could reach Mysuru, the animal welfare volunteers who got wind of the same alerted the police, who succeeded in intercepting the vehicle near the Post Office circle in KR Pet about 11.30 am, said a police officer involved in the operation.
The animals were finding it difficult to stand as they were crammed into the vehicle, he said. Animal lovers along with the police arranged milk and fed the calves. Acting on the information provided by the driver, the police also included the name of Lokesh in the first information report.
Madhugiri police rescue 32 cattle
Tumakuru: Madhugiri police rescued 32 cattle including cows, buffaloes and calves which were allegedly being transported to a slaughterhouse on Friday. The accused were transporting them in luggage carrier goods vehicle from Gudibande in Andhra Pradesh to Alipura in Gouribidanuru taluk. The residents intercepted the vehicle and informed the police. The accused managed to escape from the spot. The rescued animals were shifted to a goshala.