Ghaziabad: The Ghaziabad police arrested two persons for allegedly smuggling a parliament of owls, allegedly meant for sacrifice on the occasion of Diwali. The police said the two were arrested from near the culvert in Sector 5 in Vaishali late Tuesday. Five owls were recovered from the two suspects.
The suspects were identified as Sumit kumar and Pradeep Kumar. Police said they were transporting the owls on a motorcycle and were headed to Delhi for selling them. The police said on questioning, the two told them that they were trying to sell the owls as there are several people who wish to sacrifice them on Diwali. Misguided beliefs and superstitions say sacrificing these birds during Diwali will bring good luck.
“The two men were arrested with the birds and were rescued. The two told us that the body parts of these birds are sold at a very high price during Diwali as people use these for sacrifice. The birds will be handed over to the forest department,” Keshav Kumar, assistant superintendent of police (Indirapuram), said.
“We are trying to find out the prospective purchasers from the two suspects. They also told us that they caught the birds from the jungle areas in Ghaziabad,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“We are trying to find out the prospective purchasers from the two suspects. They also told us that they caught the birds from the jungle areas in Ghaziabad,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}The two were booked under the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act at the Indirapuram police station. The police said both are residents of Krishna Nagar Mangal Bazar, in the Sihani Gate police station area.