Akali Sarpanch, NRI brother booked for killing Sambhar in Hoshiarpur
Thursday, 28/02/2013
http://www.punjabnewsline.com/news/Akali-sarpanch_-NRI-brother-booked-for-killing-Sambhar-in-Hoshiarpur.html
JALANDHAR/HOSHIARPUR: The Forest and Wildlife authorities at Hoshiarpur have booked a village sarpanch and his NRI brother for killing a sambhar and destroying the evidence under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972. The police had arrested a migrant labourer also in this connection.
The labourer had been an employee of the sarpanch. The sarpanch and his brother are absconding since a case was registered against them. The department had also named some more persons involved in the crime.
According to information, the duo hunted the sambhar with a gunshot and after killing it removed its skin to hand over the remains of sambhar including hides, legs and other organs to the migrant labourer Vijay Kumar, a native of Jharkhand to bury the same in the fields in the outskirts of the village Tohara in Dasuha sub-division of Hoshiarpur district.
As soon the information reached the office of the Divisional Forest Officer, a team of the wildlife wing conducted a raid at the site and took Vijay Kumar in its custody.
During interrogation, Vijay Kumar revealed the truth after which the officials dug the fields and seized hides, legs and other organs of the animal of rare specie. Vijay told the officials that the sarpanch, his brother accompanied by three other accomplices reached the tubewell site in the fields in a luxurious vehicle with the sambhar lying dead in it.
The skin of the animal was fleeced at the tubewell and the remaining organs of the animal including hides and legs were handed over to him to be buried in the soil in the orchard of mangoes.
The wildlife authorities conducted raids at the residence and other suspected hidden places of the sarpanch also to nab him and his other accomplices but all in vain. The officials have impounded the vehicle of the sarpanch used in the crime.
The authorities of the Forest and Wildlife department are said to be under heavy political pressure to wipe out the name of the sarpanch and his NRI brother from the case registered under various provisions of the Punjab Wildlife Protection Act 1972 as the sarpanch is a senior leader of the BJP in Hoshiarpur.
