Bajrang Dal’s founder member in Chhindwara and regional convener of the campaign, Raju Charnagar, admitted that the tip-off was wrong. He blamed it on elements who were at the receiving end of the campaign, which had saved hundreds of cows from being slaughtered.

“We are ashamed of what we did, but we were misled. We will publicly apologise to the foreigners if required,” Charnagar said adding, “but our campaign will continue.” He, however, blamed the villagers for the theft of phones, wallets and a laptop. “The police should also inquire who were behind the theft,” he said.

The Dal alleged that thousands of cows are transported to slaughterhouses in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra via the Chhindwara border. Sources in Parasia and Chandameta police stations admitted that the Dal activists were active in the area and often liased with the police to rescue cows.

“Usually they surround the vehicle and do not allow the people inside to leave until the police arrives,” a constable said. In December, they reportedly succeeded in catching four minority community members, including two women, with beef and handed them over to the police.

The BJP government in Madhya Pradesh has decided to award stringent punishment for cow slaughter as the present legislation has failed to be an effective deterrent. The Bill to this effect is likely to come up in the February session of the Assembly.

Recently, a series of bandhs had been organised by Hindu organisations to protest the recovery of a large number of carcasses near Mandsaur town.