In a shocking violation of the Wildlife Protection Act, four Great Bengal Monitor lizards were recently hunted down and their meat served in a farmhouse party near Amravati in Maharashtra. These endangered reptiles are listed under Schedule I of the Act, thereby enjoying the highest degree of protection similar to tigers and leopards.
What more, the offenders even uploaded on WhatsApp pictures of the animals being chopped into pieces, cooked and eaten. This bravado helped the Forest department officials track them down. One of them has already been arrested.
Confirming the incident, Chief Conservator of Forest, Amravati Circle, Maharashtra, Sanjeev Gaur said the Monitor lizards are found in abundance in the Vidharba Forest region, especially during the monsoon. Of the seven persons who feasted on the lizards, the watchman has been arrested. The remaining six are absconding, said the Chief Conservator of Forest.
The Forest Department got alerted when animal lovers forwarded to its officials a set of pictures posted on WhatsApp. The mobile number posting the pictures, along with the location of mobile tower, was tracked down by the Cyber crime cell department, said Gaur.
However, by the time the forest personnel raided the farmhouse , the offenders had already left. The watchman revealed that the “wild party” was attended by six persons . The remains of bones and other parts of the animals’ bodies were found strewn at the location.
The forest department seized them for DNA testing which confirmed that they belonged to the endangered Great Bengal Monitor lizards. The Sessions Court as well as the High Court have rejected their applications ,for anticipatory bails. Three of them have moved the Supreme Court.
Kishor Rithe, Member of Maharashtra State Wildlife Board and former member of Standing Committee of National Board For Wildlife, welcomed the directives of the court, saying , “Their orders have sent a message among masses that wild animals are not the substance of delicacy and enjoyment. Conservation of lesser known species is equally important,” he said.
Gaur said the offenders have no option but to surrender. “ The case is unique of its kind as it takes up the cause of smaller wild animals as Monitor lizards. Being predators as well as animals of prey, they are connected in both ways to the food chain and sustenance of ecology,” he said.