KOLHAPUR: Two persons were arrested on Thursday for smuggling two barking deer near Peth naka, around 40km north of Kolhapur on National Highway 48. The deer are around four months old and have been shifted to the rescue centre in Chandoli National Park. Following a tip off the crime branch officials of the Sangli police raided a vehicle near Peth naka and found two animals worth around Rs 20,000 in the vehicle.
The police have also seized the SUV costing Rs 6 lakh. The arrested suspects are identified as Sanjay Krushna Dhumal (38), a resident of Lohari village of Poladpur tehsil, and his driver Firoz Bashir Kudapkar (25), a resident of Varandh village in Mahad tehsil. Both are from Raigad district, where barking deer are found in the forest.
Inspector Vishwanath Ghanvat, crime branch, said: “I had received a tip regarding the sale of barking deer. We stopped the Bolero vehicle and found that Sanjay was carrying two deer in the vehicle. We detained the suspects and informed the forest officials.
By afternoon, we handed over the persons, the animals and their property to the forest officials for further investigation.” Samadhan Chavan, deputy forest conservator of Sangli forest department told TOI, “Firoz and Sanjay were transporting the barking deer to Sangli for sale. They have not yet revealed the names of their buyers.
The police handed over the case to forest department as it is a schedule-3 animal.” “Both the suspects are booked under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, section 9 (hunting), 43 (regulation of transfer of animal), 42 (ownership of wild animal) and 51 (punishment for three years of jail and Rs 25,000 fine). The range forest officer of Shirala, SK Kadam took charge of the animals and placed the detained persons before the local court of Shirala.
The court remanded the suspects in police custody till June 25,” Chavan said. The court has also asked the forest officials not to release the animals immediately in the forest.
