Amravati: A Muslim man was hospitalised after self-styled cow protectors thrashed him on allegations of possessing beef on Wednesday. According to the reports, the cow protectors were unaware that the 36-year-old Katol resident was associated with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. However, Salim Ismail Shah claims to be the general secretary of BJP’s Katol taluka minority cell. Shah was hospitalised after the beating. The police arrested four men for the assault near the area he was beaten up. The incident occurred while the victim was returning from Amner village in Amravati district to Katol two-wheeler after purchasing meat for a function. Somewhere along the way, the cow protection activists approached Shah and began beating him up for allegedly transporting beef. Shah said he kept trying to convince his attackers that the meat in his possession was mutton and not beef, but they wouldn’t listen to him, reported Hindustan Times. During the incident, Shah received no assistance from passersby. However, a few did take videos and pictures of the incident on their cellphone cameras. Finally one of the accused threw Shah’s vehicle at him – knocking him out. Shah was admitted to local medical centre by the police team and later shifted to the Katol civil hospital, where doctors declared him out of danger.