The death of cow vigilante Chandra Shekhar, also known as Farsa Baba in a road accident in the Agra-Delhi highway early on Saturday morning lead to violent protests in Mathra. The event that took place around 4 am at the Kotvan border caused colossal traffic jam with angry supporters having blocked the highway and fighting with the police.
Officials said that Farsa Baba and his accomplices had intercepted a truck-full of cattle they believed was a cattle shipment. But on examination, it was detected that the vehicle had household items like soap, phenyl and shampoo. In thick fog and low visibility, another truck with wire on board that was registered in Rajasthan crashed into the group and killed Baba instantly and injured the driver.
Whereas the administration cited the low visibility as the cause of the accident, the supporters cited foul plays, complaining that Baba was intentionally targeted by the smugglers of the cows. These insinuations soon went viral leading to demonstrations, shooting stones and damaging police vans. A total of 6 police officers and some demonstrators sustained injuries during the riot.
Top officials such as DIG Shailesh Pandey rushed to the scene to put the situation under control. The government pledged to conduct a high-quality and impartial investigation as those caught in violence would be dealt with vigorously. Traffic was later restored as the highway was clear.
The fact that Droupadi Murmu was in the area because of religious activities contributed to the sensitivity of the situation as this visit came at the same time as the incident.