Shiv Sena MLA seen beating leopard during rescue, animal rights groups see red

Mumbai: Animal rights organisations have sought action against Shiv Sena MLA Chandrakant Patil after a viral video purportedly showed him and others beating a female leopard during a rescue operation in Jalgaon district.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals India (PETA India), Compassion Unlimited Plus Action (CUPA), Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (WRRC) and the Federation of Indian Animal Protection Organisations (FIAPO) on Wednesday wrote to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who heads the Shiv Sena, and demanded action against the MLA.

Patil's reaction to the controversy was not available immediately.

The organisations also submitted a petition to the Deputy Conservator of Forests (Territorial), Jalgaon, seeking immediate registration of a preliminary offence report (POR) against the accused.

According to reports, a female leopard was spotted near a government guesthouse in Muktainagar, and forest personnel darted her with a tranquiliser. As the sedative took effect, onlookers including MLA Patil allegedly chased and hit the animal with sticks before the forest department team secured her.

"A wild animal who is frightened, injured, or sedated is not a punching bag, and a rescue operation is not a spectacle," PETA India said in its statement. "If anyone, especially an elected representative, joins a mob that assaults a protected species and interferes with officials doing their jobs, authorities must respond firmly and fast," it added.

The organisations requested that authorities take action under The Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 and other relevant laws, and called for a time-bound inquiry into how the crowd was permitted to close in on the leopard during the rescue operation.