File image of a cow shelter. (Representative image)
Credit: PTI File Photo
Lucknow: An investigation into a suspected cow slaughter case here has snowballed into a criminal conspiracy probe, with police alleging that a man was deliberately framed twice using planted evidence amid a matrimonial dispute.
Three police personnel have also been suspended for allegedly attempting to detain the accused woman from inside the high court premises.
The case traces back to January 14, when Kakori police intercepted an online porter vehicle on the city's outskirts and recovered around 12 kg of suspected beef, based on a tip-off.
The delivery was booked in the name of a businessman, Wasif, from Aminabad, who denied any involvement, prompting a deeper technical and field-level investigation.
Police officers said subsequent verification raised red flags over the booking and delivery process, eventually leading investigators to suspect that the consignment had been deliberately arranged to implicate the businessman.
A local police officer said the probe later pointed towards an alleged conspiracy linked to a marital dispute, in which the man's wife, Ameena, and her associate, Amaan, from Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, are suspected to have played a key role.
Investigators also revisited a similar case from September last year, when Wasif was arrested after suspected beef was recovered from his parked vehicle in Hazratganj. He was released shortly thereafter, and police now believe that incident, too, may have been orchestrated as part of a broader plan to implicate him.
Police have arrested Amaan, while Ameena remains at large. Efforts are underway to arrest her, officials said, adding that further legal proceedings are continuing.
The case took another turn after a complaint was filed alleging that police personnel attempted to detain the woman from inside the Lucknow High Court premises earlier this week.
Based on the complaint from the lawyer who alleged a violation of rules, an FIR was registered at Gomti Nagar's Vibhuti Khand police station against the concerned policemen.
The FIR invokes Sections 329(3) (criminal trespass), 351(3) (criminal intimidation) and 352 (provocation with intent to cause breach of the peace) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Lucknow West) Vishvajeet Srivastava told PTI that three police personnel have been suspended in connection with the incident and attached to the reserve police lines.
He said, "Investigations are continuing into both the alleged conspiracy and the actions of the suspended personnel, and efforts are on to ensure the arrest of the woman named in the case."