Shimla, June 6: A man was arrested in Bilaspur district near here on Saturday on an allegation by the owner of a pregnant cow that he injured the bovine by feeding her some eatables mixed with explosives, said police. Also Read | Pregnant Cow’s Jaw Blown Off by Explosive While Grazing in Field in Himachal Pradesh, Owner Blames Neighbour for Cruel Act.

The incident follows the shocking death of a pregnant elephant dying of drowning after collapsing in Velliyar river in Palakkad district of Kerala due to starvation and exhaustion. She had been found dead with major injuries in her oral cavities, possibly suffered after eating or having been fed firecrackers-stuffed pineapple. Also Read | Baby Born in Manipur Quarantine Centre Named Emmanuel Quarantino: Live Breaking News Headlines & Coronavirus Updates, June 6, 2020.

The arrest was made after a video footage by cow owner Gurdial Singh, accusing his neighbour Nand Lal Dhiman of Dahad village in Bilaspur district, of being behind injuries to the pregnant animal last month, went viral on social media.

Bilaspur Superintendent of Police Dewakar Sharma said Nand Lal was arrested on Saturday from his village Dahad. Police had visited the crime spot in the village along with a medical team, which examined the cow whose mouth and jaw were found heavily injured, the SP said, adding “the cow was given prompt medical aid”.

The wounds appeared to have been inflicted by some explosive material that people in rural areas use to deter animals from damaging their crops, said Sharma, adding the medical team has collected some samples of the cow's blood and injured skin near the jaw for further forensic tests.

The SP said the police had registered a case in this regard on May 26 itself in response to cow owner Gurdial Singh's complaint dated May 25 that “his pregnant cow was grazing in a field at a distance of 20 meters from his house at 8.15 pm when he heard an explosion.

“On reaching the explosion site, he (Singh) found that his cow's jaw was injured in the explosion,” the SP said separately in a letter, apprising the state police chief of the sensitive incident. “The cow owner had added in his complaint that he suspected his neighbour Nand Lal being behind the mischief,” the SP wrote to the Himachal DGP.

On Gurdial Singh's complaint, also endorsed by deputy chief of Dahad village panchayat, police had registered a case under Indian Penal Code section 429, involving the mischief of maiming or killing cattle, and other relevant sections of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal Act, the SP wrote to the state DGP.

SP Dewakar Sharma also informed the DGP that “the cow was given prompt medical aid”. “Days after the incident, the cow also gave birth to a baby calf,” he wrote to the DGP.

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