The crime branch of Delhi police has arrested three poachers and recovered skull, teeth, nails, bones of a tiger from them. One arrested accused Sarju and his father Daliya are said to have worked as poachers for Sansar Chand, a notorious criminal. The accused have been booked under Wildlife Protection Act.
Additional commissioner of police (crime branch) Ravindra Yadav said the police got a tip off that Sarju was dealing in leopard and tiger skins. A team led by DCP Bhisham Singh conducted several raids to arrest the accused.
“We got to know that Sarju and his aide would come in a car on GTK bypass via ISBT Kashmere Gate. The team took along the staff of forest department of Maharashtra and Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, Delhi, for identification purpose and laid a trap at Chandgi Ram Akhara T-point. The team arrested two persons, identified as Suraj Bhan, alias Sarju, and Naresh, alias Lala,” said Mr Yadav.
The police said that more than 18 kg of skull, teeth, nails and bones of a tiger were recovered from the dickey of car.
The accused revealed that they had purchased these from a Gujjar herdsman, who is a resident of Nagina, Uttar Pradesh. Nagina lies in the foothills below Uttarakhand and is adjacent to and right in between the two major national parks and tiger reserves of Jim Corbett and Rajaji National Parks.