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Police have also seized a sample of the meat and sent it to a laboratory in Mathura for forensic testing. Results are pending.

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Police in the northern Indian city of Aligarh have detained two men after a Muslim meat trader was allegedly assaulted by a group that accused him of transporting beef, officials said, reported Maktoob Media.

The incident took place on Saturday on Hanumgarhi Road when Shareef Qureshi, a licensed meat trader from Harduaganj, was stopped by a group of men who accused him of carrying cow meat. Qureshi has said the meat was buffalo meat and that he was carrying valid purchase documents.

“I was coming to my place as usual when they stopped me at Harduaganj outer and started beating me without even saying a word,” Qureshi told Maktoob.

“They were constantly abusing me and accusing me of carrying cow beef. They tore the papers and bills I had from the purchase. They took all the money and my mobile phone,” he added.

Police said Qureshi was assaulted with belts, hoses and bricks, and that his motorcycle was damaged. His complaint alleges that seven named men and several unidentified others attacked him before fleeing when police arrived.

Authorities have registered a case under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, including rioting, wrongful restraint, causing hurt, criminal intimidation and mischief. Two suspects, Anuj Pandit and Sheelu Rajput, have been detained for questioning, police said.

Rajeev Dwivedi, Circle Officer (II) in Aligarh, confirmed the arrests and said efforts were under way to identify and locate the remaining suspects.

Police have also seized a sample of the meat and sent it to a laboratory in Mathura for forensic testing. Results are pending.

Qureshi, 42, who has worked as a meat trader for over two decades, said he had long feared such an attack. “Though I have been in this meat trading work for years, I was always scared that this could happen one day—and it happened,” he said.

His brother Shah Alam said the family had limited faith in the justice process. “We have filed a complaint, but we are not sure how long it will take to get justice. We have witnessed how the law works,” he said.

“We just hope that every one of us gets justice—first dignity, the right to live peacefully, and justice. That’s the only thing we need,” Alam added.

Qureshi suffered multiple injuries and received stitches to his mouth. He has since been discharged from hospital and is recovering at home.