DFO absolves leopardess attacker despite video evidence
Pilibhit: After a 40-day inquiry into the assault of an injured leopardess, the divisional forest officer (DFO) of the Pilibhit forest and wildlife division (FWD), Bharat Kumar, absolved the main accused, Pyare Lal, of any wrongdoing, on May 27.
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The incident which took place on April 5, involved the villager striking the big cat multiple times with an axe, which has been captured in a widely circulated video.
DFO Kumar, instead of submitting a report to the field director of Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR) – the immediate authority governing DFOs of PTR and FWD – filed his report directly to district magistrate Gyanendra Singh, which concluded that Pyare Lal had acted in self-defence and that his axe attack caused no harm to the leopardess.
The decision has drawn sharp criticism from within the forest department. An IFS officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, expressed disbelief at the DFO's decision. "If I were in Bharat Kumar's place, I would have booked the attacker under sections of the Wildlife Protection Act. This is undisputedly a wildlife-related crime," he said.
The incident unfolded when a pickup mini truck struck the leopardess on the Pilibhit-Madhotanda road near Mala forest range of PTR.
The vehicle reportedly dragged the big cat for about a kilometre before the driver abandoned the truck and fled. The injured animal then took shelter in a nearby vacant agricultural field.
While forest officials waited for the rescue team to arrive, Pyare Lal, the owner of the field, approached the leopardess along with two forest watchers — Anokhe Lal and Rakesh Tiwari — defying the assigned protocol. Feeling threatened, the leopardess charged at the trio, prompting Pyare Lal to attack her with an axe.
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The autopsy later revealed fractures in the animal's third and fourth vertebrae, and PTR veterinary officer Dr Daksh Gangwar did not rule out axe blows as the cause.
However, a three-member inquiry panel formed to probe the matter established that Pyare Lal had thrown the axe in self-defence and concluded that it did not cause any injury.
The IFS officer said, "Approaching and provoking a scheduled wild animal is a punishable offence under the Wildlife Protection Act.
All three individuals should have been held accountable."
Chief wildlife warden of UP, Anuradha Vemuri, said she will summon the concerned report for a detailed review, citing concerns raised by the video evidence.
Meanwhile, the forest department has also failed to apprehend the truck driver involved in the initial collision. Sub-divisional forest officer of FWD, Anjani Kumar Shrivastav, said, "The vehicle owner, Amir Khan, secured anticipatory bail about two weeks ago. However, he has refused to disclose the driver's identity. The department has been unable to trace the driver so far."
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