3rd Muslim Man Killed Over Beef

For the third time in less than a month, a Muslim man has been killed over beef. In the most recent incident, an 18-year-old truck driver was burned in the cab of his truck in an Indian-controlled part of Kashmir Oct. 9 because he was suspected of transporting beef; he died of his injuries Sunday. The teen was actually carrying coal, the Los Angeles Times reports. Hindu militants are suspected in the gasoline bomb attack—Hindus consider cows sacred for religious reasons, while Muslims eat beef. Two thousand demonstrators flooded the streets in Kashmir Monday to protest the attack, and violent clashes broke out between them and security forces. A curfew has been instituted.

The first recent murder took place late last month when a Muslim man in India's Uttar Pradesh state was lynched by a mob over rumors (apparently untrue) that he'd eaten beef. Then, last week, a Muslim man was killed by members of a radical Hindu group because he had allegedly smuggled cattle from another Indian state. Also today, Hindu militants threw ink on a Muslim lawmaker who recently served beef at a party he hosted. They reportedly shouted, "India will not tolerate any disrespect to cows." Nine people have been arrested in connection to the latest death, the AP reports. (More India stories.)