An adult tiger was killed in the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR) by seven villagers, claimed PTR officials, after they recovered the carcass of the big cat from the protected forest on Thursday.
Three of the seven people who allegedly killed the tiger were the ones who sustained injuries while trying to poach the animal on Wednesday, said the officials.
“The accused had ventured almost 2 km into the forest on Wednesday with a motive to kill the tiger. But they failed in their attempt. Three of them were injured while the rest managed to flee from the spot,” said Kailash Prakash, divisional forest officer (DFO), PTR.
However, the tiger succumbed to the injuries on it by the accused. “The tiger was found dead in compartment 112 of Mahof Range. Its body had injury marks near the neck. We have sent the carcass for a post-mortem examination,” said the DFO.
“The three injured persons managed to come out of the forest and claimed that they were attacked by the tiger while working in sugarcane fields,” added the officer.
The forest officials recovered seven cycles belonging to the attackers and lodged a police complaint against them under the Wildlife Protection Act. A team of forest department and police interrogated those who were injured in the attack. “They admitted their involvement in plotting to kill the tiger. They also identified the others who were involved in the incident,” added the DFO.
{{/usCountry}}The forest officials recovered seven cycles belonging to the attackers and lodged a police complaint against them under the Wildlife Protection Act. A team of forest department and police interrogated those who were injured in the attack. “They admitted their involvement in plotting to kill the tiger. They also identified the others who were involved in the incident,” added the DFO.
{{/usCountry}}The forest officials also suspended two forest officials for dereliction of duty and ordered departmental inquiry against them. “We have also requested for fresh investigation by an independent body in the matter,” said the DFO.
According to forest officials, this was the first incident of tiger poaching since 2014.