A leopard which strayed into human habitation and injured nine persons in Gurugram on Thursday was allegedly hacked to death by villagers, said officials.
The animal was spotted around 8 am and ran amok for more than three hours on the streets of Mandawar village, 26 kilometres from Gurugram, local sources told HT.
Rambir Singh, Conservator of Wildlife, Gurugram said that soon after, a huge crowd of nearly 1,500 people from nearby Kasan ki Dhani and Sukhroli villages gathered and started attacking the animal with axes, bamboo sticks and stones.
In the melee, nine persons including a guard of the Wildlife Department were injured, the official said, adding that the injured were rushed to the nearby Sohna Civil Hospital.
“The animal had its claws round a girl’s neck when a young man grabbed it by its neck and pulled it off her. Other villagers them overpowered the leopard, beat it with sticks and killed it,” a local resident told HT.
Angry villagers dragged the corpse to the main road a kilometre away as a battery of police and wildlife department officials allegedly remained silent.
The Wildlife Conservator said legal action would be taken against those responsible for the death.
“We will take legal action against those found guilty of killing the animal. A panel of three doctors has been formed to do the post-mortem,” he said.
Singh added that the entire incident was videotaped and the matter has been reported to Gurugram Police Commissioner.
