Hindu journalist shot dead by Muslim cow smuggler and relative of Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi
Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, India 
12 May, 2024
Case Summary
On May 13, journalist Ashutosh Srivastava, 43, was shot dead in the Shahganj area of Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh. The attack occurred around 9:30 am near Jaunpur-Shahganj Road as he was heading to Imranganj market. The following day, Srivastava's brother filed a complaint naming four individuals and five unidentified persons as suspects. Among the accused was Nasir Jamal, a relative of Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi. The Police registered an FIR and arrested Jamiruddin Qureshi, a named suspect, in Mumbai's Bhiwandi area. Qureshi, a known criminal and a notorious cow smuggler with 16 cases against him, is believed to be the mastermind behind Srivastava's murder. Reports suggest Srivastava had been warned by police about threats to his life due to his reporting on cow smuggling activities. Despite this, Srivastava continued his work, which is believed to have provoked the smugglers, leading to his murder.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
In this case, the Hindu journalist was shot dead owing to his continued reporting of illegal cow slaughter by the Muslim perpetrators. He had also been warned by the police that there was a threat to his life. Cow slaughter in itself is a religiously sensitive subject since Hindus consider the cow holy. Muslims, on the other hand, have used beef and cow slaughter as a means to insult and denigrate Hinduism. One must recall that the Islamic terrorist who carried out the Pulwama terror attack also referred to Hindus as 'cow worshippers'. Historically, cow and cow meat has been used to denigrate Hindus and forced conversions - something that happens to this day. In this case, it is not beyond the realm of reasoning that religious hate played a role in the murder of the Hindu journalist, however, since there is no explicit religious-angle, in terms of action, words or circumstantial indications, this case is being added to the undecided category. If more information emerges, it would later be added to the hate tracker database.
Victim Details
Total Victim
1
Deceased
1
Gender
- Male 1
- Female 0
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 0
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 1
Age Group
- Minor 0
- Adult 1
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Case sub-judice
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 5 to 10
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
