7 Jailed For Harassing Lioness With Bait In Gujarat’s Gir Wooded area In 2018

Gir Somnath:

A courtroom in Gir Somnath district of Gujarat has convicted seven folks, together with 3 vacationers from Ahmedabad, and awarded them other prison phrases for harassing a lioness in Gir woodland in 2018.

In an order issued on Monday, Judicial Justice of the Peace First Elegance at Gir Gadhada, Sunik Kumar Dave, awarded 3 years’ rigorous imprisonment to 6 of the accused, whilst every other accused used to be sentenced to one-year in prison.

The courtroom additionally directed the district collector to take custody of a land allocated to the circle of relatives of some of the convicts in Dhumbakarea of Babaria vary of the woodland the place the incident happened.

8 folks had been arrested in Would possibly 2018 after a video clip surfaced on social media by which they had been observed harassing a lioness via luring it with a hen as bait.

The tom cat used to be observed making determined makes an attempt to grasp the hen and later were given it, however no longer prior to the accused had their proportion of amusing in teasing it.

The courtroom awarded 3 years’ sentence to 6 of the accused – Ilyas Hoth, Abbas Baloch, Altaf Baloch (from Gir Gadhada taluka within the district), and 3 vacationers Ravi Patadiya, Divyang Gajjar and Rathinbhai Patel.

They had been pronounced to blame beneath the Flora and fauna (Coverage) Act Sections 2 (16)(B) (taking pictures, trapping or baiting any wild animal), 9 (looking), 27 (restriction on access in a sanctuary) and different provisions.

But even so, accused Magilal Meena used to be sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment after being convicted beneath Segment 27 of the Act.

The Justice of the Peace additionally imposed a nice of Rs 10,000 nice on every of the accused, and directed for Rs 35,000 from the quantity accumulated to be deposited to the lion welfare fund.

The courtroom acquitted every other accused, Hasambhai Koreja, for need of proof towards him.