These vigilante groups have extrajudicially targeted people suspected of cattle smuggling, though most victims of such violence have been Muslim livestock traders.

Khan was one of only 10 dairy farmers in his village, and he was hoping to increase milk production for the upcoming holy month of Ramadan.

[3] According to Irshad, the son of Pehlu Khan who with him, "We had all the relevant papers to show that we were carrying the cows for dairy farming.

In the chargesheet submitted by the police to the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate of Behror in May, 2019, they also reportedly charged Khan's two sons and his transporter under the Rajasthan Bovine Animal (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation of Temporary Migration or Export) Act, 1995.

At the trial court of the Additional District Judge, Alwar all of the original six accused were acquitted in August, 2019 on basis of "benefit of doubt".

This was attributed by the People's Union for Civil Liberties on the lack of forensics done by the police on the video recording of the killing by the assailants.

[15] The Supreme Court issued notices on 7 April 2017 to Rajasthan along with four other Indian states (Gujarat, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Karnataka) and to the central government asking for a ban on cow vigilante groups.

[23] She equated the accused to popular historical Indian figures like Bhagat Singh and Chandra Shekhar Azad,[23] saying the vigilantes of today will "be known as heroes in the future".