Leopard found dead, villager held

A decomposed carcass of a leopard was recovered from a water body near Bampewada village under Lakhni forest range in Bhandara district, forest officials said Tuesday.

The carcass was found near Nawegaon Nagzira Tiger Reserve (NNTR) on Sakoli-Tirora Road, they said.

A local villager was detained in this connection by the forest authorities, who suspect that the big cat died of electrocution and was thrown into the water body in an attempt to cover up its death.

Range Forest Officer Bharat Koli of Lakhni was tipped off that the wild animal got electrocuted three days back in a paddy-field near Bampewada village and its carcass was later thrown into a water body.

According to a forest official, an investigation was launched and the villager was detained. It is suspected that the animal died after it came in contact with the electric fence laid by the villager around his farmland in a bid to protect the crop.

"The carcass was pulled out of water with the help of a local fisherman today morning. After the post-mortem, the carcass was consigned to flames at Gadegaon," the official said.

Further investigation is on.