Leopard injures six after straying into Ghaziabad court complex

Six people were injured after a leopard strayed into the district court complex here on Wednesday, triggering panic and a four-hour operation to catch the animal.

According to police officials, the leopard first attacked a cobbler on the ground floor of the court complex in the Kavinagar area of the district before heading to the first floor.

The animal's presence in the chief judicial magistrate court complex triggered panic and sent people running for their lives. While some ran towards the staircase, others locked themselves up in offices and washrooms.

A joint operation of police and the forest department was launched as soon as the news spread and it took over four hours to rescue the animal, the officials said.

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The forest department team finally managed to tranquillise the leopard. "The animal has been rescued. The forest department will take it away for further action," Assistant Commissioner of Police Abhishek Srivastav.

The leopard was running from one end of the building to another, attacking people coming in its way, the officials said.

While the operation was still underway, Srivastav said, "Around six people have sustained injuries after being attacked by the animal."

The rescue team managed to get a hold of the situation once the animal returned to the ground floor. "The two collapsible gates on either sides of the ground floor were closed to confine the animal. Once this was done, some of our teams focused on rescuing people locked inside offices and washrooms of the building," said the officer.