Karnataka: Leopard linked to the death of 6-yr-old captured

The forest officials had tried to catch the leopard after it attacked a six-year-old Soliga tribal girl, Susheela, at Kaggaligundi village in Hanur taluk, on June 26.

The Chamarajanagara forest department captured a leopard Saturday night in the Madhuvanahalli of Kollegala taluk in the district, officials said on Sunday.

The Chamarajanagara forest department captured a leopard Saturday night in the Madhuvanahalli of Kollegala taluk in the district (HT Photo)

The forest officials had tried to catch the leopard after it attacked a six-year-old Soliga tribal girl, Susheela, at Kaggaligundi village in Hanur taluk, on June 26.

The leopard had attempted to take Susheela into the forest while she was playing near her house. The girl was dragged approximately 200 meters before the leopard abandoned her due to the arrival of villagers and their screams. However, Susheela succumbed to her injuries on the night of July 14, forest officials said.

According to the officials, Susheela, the daughter of Ramu and Lalita from Kaggaligundi village under Chikka Malapur gram panchayat in Hanur taluk, suffered severe neck injuries.

Local villagers discovered her in critical condition and immediately alerted the forest department and 108 ambulance services.

“Emergency medical personnel provided initial medical aid before rushing her to Kamagere private hospital. Forest officials inspected the area, and due to the severity of her injuries, the girl was transferred to Cheluwamba Hospital in Mysuru. She received intensive care treatment for the past 14 days, including a surgical procedure performed on July 11. Unfortunately, despite all efforts, her condition did not improve,” said a forest official.

Soon after the incident, villagers protested against the forest department, urging them to capture the leopard.

For the past 19 days, the forest department has been actively involved in capturing the elusive leopard.

To capture the leopard responsible for the attack, the forest department placed six cages near the site where the incident occurred.

The cages were strategically placed at Siddeshwar Hill near Madhuvanahalli in Kollegala taluk.

Officials reported that the leopard had moved away from the Kaggaligundi and Kanchagalli areas and was roaming within the Male Mahadeshwara Wildlife Sanctuary.

Recently, a viral video clip captured a leopard roaming around Siddeshwarabetta, leading locals to suspect that this might be the same leopard responsible for the attacks on the girl and the farmer.

During the operation, the forest department strategically placed cages at six locations and installed 30 cameras to monitor the leopard’s movements.

On Saturday night, the leopard was successfully trapped in one of the cages, which was discovered by patrolling personnel early Sunday morning.

‘’We have checked thoroughly. The leopard which injured the girl and a farmer is not the one caught on Saturday night ‘’ Biligiri Ranganatha swamy temple (BRT) tiger reserve director and deputy conservator of forests Deep J Contractor told HT.

She further explained that they launched an operation to capture the male leopard, approximately five years old, responsible for the attacks on humans.

Photos of the trapped leopards were captured on the cameras. The operation will continue until the male leopard is caught to prevent any potential future attacks on humans. Contractor mentioned that the plan to shift the injured girl to a hospital in Bengaluru was dropped due to the doctors’ advice on the potential risks involved. The officer visited the girl’s family on Saturday, offering condolences and promising to provide compensation of ₹15 lakh to the family as soon as possible.

“The leopard which was caught will be kept in observation for three days to conduct medical check-up and treatment and would be released to Bannerghatta wildlife sanctuary or at the rescue centre. It will be decided tomorrow,” he said.