New Delhi: A fact-finding delegation under the banner of the Bhumi Adhikar Andolan, a movement for land rights, to four Rajasthan districts affected by cow-vigilantism has found that police in the state's Mewat region were conniving with communal forces to brand Muslims as criminals.

The team members who included two CPM parliamentarians said what they found during their January 6-7 tour was "reminiscent of the British colonial branding of certain tribes as criminal tribes".

Briefing the media here on their return, the delegation members said there appeared to be a pattern in all the cases; whether it was the lynching of Pehlu Khan in April or the recent killing and burning of Afrazul Khan in Rajsamand district.

"First, canards are spread against the minority community; calling them either cow smugglers or love jihadis. After the crime, police, instead of going after the accused, look for evidence that will help the accused," said Supreme Court lawyer P.V. Surendra Nath, who was part of the delegation.

CPM MP K.K. Ragesh, also a part of the team along with fellow party parliamentarian Badrudduzza Khan, said it was evident that Rajasthan had become the epicentre for attacks on minorities, as there was a high degree of prejudice against the minority community.

What most of the members pointed out was that the areas that witnessed vigilantism-related murders - be it in Mewat or even Rajsamand - were, in effect, districts that had seen communal amity for decades.

"There appears to be an orchestrated campaign to disturb the communal harmony in these areas to rally people along communal lines ahead of the Assembly elections later this year," the delegation said.

In Mewat - where there is a concentration of Muslims - the delegation found evidence of state-sponsored bias and religious profiling; resulting in numerous false cases being filed against dairy farmers for alleged smuggling of cows.

In Alwar and Bharatpur districts of the Mewat area, gau-raksha police outposts have been set up and they work hand in glove with the vigilante groups, said the All India Kisan Sabha's Vijoo Krishnan, another member of the team.

The delegation said it was a win-win situation for the vigilantes as they confiscate the cows from cattle owners and distribute them among themselves, while fulfilling their political agenda.