Three booked for killing leopard in Galiyat

Carcass to be sent to Peshawar Zoo for taxidermy

ABBOTABAD:

The Wildlife Department of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has blamed locals of a hamlet in Galiyat for provoking a leopard that then attacked residents, ensuing in the killing of the big cat by a mob through stoning and clubbing.

“We have charged three villagers, including the one who received injuries due to attack by the leopard identified as Abdul Rahim,” informed District Wildlife Officer Muhammad Idress on Wednesday.

A video had appeared on social media on Tuesday showing a mob of villagers encircling a leopard at a hilly terrain in Galiyat. The area is identified as Malkot Village of Palak Union Council of Galiyat.

While threatening to come close to the leopard, a villager was attacked by the big cat due to which, both the leopard and villager fell from the hill about twenty feet deep and when the person tried to stand up after the fall, he again came under the attack of the animal.

In an attempt to save the villager, the mob rushed towards the leopard, hitting it with stones and clubs, resulting in its killing. The injured Rahim was later taken to a hospital in Murree and then was shifted to Rawalpindi for treatment.

The Wildlife Department maintained that the leopard may have come closer to the populated area but locals should not have tried to encircle it. “In the video, the villagers are seen holding ropes and attempting to snare at the animal,” said Idress.

He mentioned that Galiyat is a habitat for common leopards and the appearance of the feline in close proximity to the populated area is a normal occurrence. He argued that locals could have tried to scare the animal away by creating noise or by resorting to aerial firing and exploding of crackers.

The officer said the dwellers of Malkot village gathered along with dogs and tried to encircle the animal which attacked them in retaliation and got killed besides injuring a local. Idress informed that a challan has been filed against three villagers and their case would be decided by the court.

Commenting on the leopard, he added that the body would be sent to Peshawar Zoo for taxidermy to be put on display.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 1^st, 2021.