Forest officials arrested a 45-year-old man who allegedly hunted five national birds — four peahens and a peacock — near the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary in Bhoohalli, Sathanur, on the outskirts of Bengaluru on Saturday.
Officials from the Cauvery Reserve Forest Range arrested Manjunath from his farmhouse. The raid was carried out on the basis of a tip-off received from local villagers.
Officials also seized a country-made rifle that the suspects had used to hunt animals and birds. Manjunath’s associate, Muthanna, managed to flee.
A Kirankumar, Range Forest Officer, Ramangaram, said that the two men hunted the national birds found in and around the sanctuary. He suspected that a bigger group was involved.
Manjunath has been booked under the Wildlife Protection Act and was remanded in judicial custody.
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