Angry Sariska villagers set fire to leopard suspected of killing man

Villagers set a leopard afire at Madhogarh village in Alwar’s Sariska Tiger Reserve on Saturday afternoon, after they found that it had killed a man and eaten parts of his body.

They then set up a blockade on the Jaipur-Alwar state highway, demanding ₹10 lakh compensation and a government job for the deceased’s next of kin. It was lifted only after the forest department handed over a cheque of ₹4 lakh to the victim’s brother, and assured the villagers that they would seek the remaining money from the state government.

The man, identified as Rampat Gujjar, was the seventh person to be killed by leopards in Sariska since last year. Two people were killed between September and October at Pratapgarh in 2016, followed by four fatal attacks in February this year. In the wake of these incidents, the forest department caged seven leopards and whisked them out of the reserve.

According to sources, villagers saw the half-eaten body of 30-year-old Gujjar near a bus stop on the Jaipur-Alwar highway. A leopard was also seen sitting on a hill near the bus stop.

As word of the likely leopard attack spread, villagers armed with wooden sticks began chasing it. Around noon, a team of forest officials reached the spot and shot it with a tranquiliser dart. However, the animal managed to enter a cave before losing consciousness. That was when the villagers took over. They threw stones at forest and police officers trying to follow the leopard, injuring additional superintendent of police Paras Jain and deputy superintendent of police SM Nagora in the process.

THE MAN, IDENTIFIED AS RAMPAT GUJJAR, WAS THE SEVENTH PERSON TO BE KILLED BY LEOPARDS IN SARISKA SINCE LAST YEAR