Madras HC Directs Forest Dept To Not Kill Tiger 'T23', Says It May Not Be A Man-Eater

The Madras HC then sought a status report on the matter and adjourned the case after Dussehra holidays

Madras High Court

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Tuesday directed Tamil Nadu Forest Department to not kill Tiger 'T23' immediately and said that it may not be a man-eater. The High Court also said that the tiger might have been misunderstood as a man-eater. 

A PIL filed by People for Cattle in India (PCFI) seeking to capture the tiger alive without killing came up for hearing before the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice PD Audikesavalu on Tuesday, said a report in Times of India. The government counsel P Muthukumar submitted that there was no plan to kill the animal and efforts were taken only to capture the tiger alive for studying the behaviour of the animal on the behalf of the principal chief conservator of forest. 

Following this the bench said that media reports showed that a large number of people are pressed into the work but the action will disturb the natural habitat of the forest and hence principal chief conservator of forest should see that less number of people intrude the forest. The officials can also capture the animal for studying the conduct and behavior, it said.

However, the other animals in the forests should not be disturbed due to the operation to capture the elephants and measures should be taken while seeking the animal to respect the right of the animal to remain wild and roam free in the forest.

The HC then sought a status report on the matter and adjourned the case after Dussehra holidays.

Earlier, Tamil Nadu Forest Department gave an order to kill 'T23' since it allegedly killed four people in Nilgiris.