Chhattisgarh’s forest department has written a letter to the state home department, recommending a central agency probe into a tiger poaching case, citing a preliminary investigation that showed suspected interstate links and the possibility of a wider wildlife-trafficking network operating beyond Chhattisgarh. The letter dated July 27, a copy of which HT has seen, said two of the arrested accused are associated with the intelligence wing of Maharashtra Police in Gadchiroli.
The probe into the tiger poaching began after three tiger skins were seized and nine people were arrested along Chhattisgarh’s border with Maharashtra. Gedam identified himself to his interrogators as a constable with the Maharashtra Police’s Special Branch, which handles local intelligence, in Gadchiroli. Madavi described himself as a police informer in Gadchiroli. The Chhattisgarh forest department letter noted that four of the nine arrested persons are from Maharashtra, including two associated with the Maharashtra Police’s intelligence cell in Gadchiroli. It added that the suspected hunting syndicate had links in both Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra and that criminals may have been using remote areas along the Indravati River for national and international wildlife trafficking.
On June 29, two tiger skins, 13 whiskers, and a motorcycle registered in Maharashtra were recovered from two people, Biyeri Gedam and Baburao Madavi, travelling from Gadchiroli in Maharashtra to Chhattisgarh. Both were produced before a court on June 30 and sent to jail. On July 5, a third tiger skin was recovered along the Indravati River in Bijapur, and seven more accused were arrested and produced before a court on July 6.
Request for CBI Investigation Amidst Sensitive Allegations
The department has formally requested a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry into a case involving key accused individuals allegedly linked to the police intelligence apparatus of another state. This request is driven by the case’s heightened sensitivity due to its location along an interstate border and the implications for national security and wildlife conservation efforts.
The department emphasized that the investigation could necessitate arrests and legal actions across various regions of the country to uncover a broader network involved in the alleged offenses.
The recommendation for a CBI probe from the principal chief conservator of forests of the Chhattisgarh Forest Force and the chief wildlife warden has received administrative approval. The department has urged the state home department to expedite the process of notifying the CBI and to provide updates on subsequent actions taken.
