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Vidyanagar Police station in Kasargod literally hogged the limelight for 24 hours from last Saturday evening for a curious reason: people thronged the station to get a glimpse of the rare ’accused’. 

The four  ’culprits’ were accused of destroying banana, paddy and greens. They were ’detained’ at the police station following complaints from two farmers of Eruthumkadavu.
Sathar and Haneef, local farmers at Eruthumkadavu whose families sole sustenance is from agricultural income, on Saturday approached Vidyanagar Principal Sub Inspector C Pramod and complained about their crop loss.

According to them, cows went on a rampage  on Friday,  destroying  the spinach (Harive) and banana crops grown on their two acre plot and the duo couldn’t do anything towards the cow menace. The owner of the cows had not taken any steps despite complaints to him.

The farmers also lamented that this was the second time they are suffering loss because of the animals and several others also had the same experience in past. Both even warned that but for any solution, farmers would be forced to do something against the animals which could trigger untoward incidents.

Having had enough verbal complaints about the ’frequent offenders’, the SI asked farmers to somehow get the cattle to the station.

On Saturday evening Sathar and Haneef managed to get all the ’miscreants’ barring one, inside a mini lorry and drove straight to police station. “We tied the four cows in the backyard of the station premises itself and provided fodder and water. By Sunday noon, a worried owner  reached here and I had a briefing to him about the entire trouble his cattle has been creating in the locality.

He admitted the negligence and was ready to provide a compensation of Rs 10,000 to the crop loss and for the charge of the mini lorry which carried the cows to station,” said Sub Inspector C Pramod to Deccan Herald. There was no registering of case or writing FIR for the ’crime’ committed by the ’accused’. Having spread the news, people from nearby flocked to station premises to see the VIP cattle.

Idea of self growth

The police said that it is common for people in rural areas such as Eruthumkadavu to set free their cows in the morning. “Cows will roam freely in and around the surroundings eating vegetables and crops that have been grown by farmers on a commercial basis, mostly on leased land. At evenings the cattle with return home safely with filled stomachs, enabling owners to shell out nothing for the breeding of the cattle,” said a Senior civil officer at Vidyanagar police station.