I am deeply saddened by the way tigress Avni was brutally murdered: Maneka Gandhi

Maneka Gandhi said the incident left her 'deeply saddened'.

Tigress Avni, which was responsible for killing 13 people, was shot dead by sharp-shooter Asgar Ali, son of famous sharp-shooter Nawab Shafat Ali, at compartment no 149 of Borati forest under the jurisdiction of the Ralegaon police station.

Maneka Gandhi attacked the BJP-led Maharashtra government over giving orders to kill the tigress.

"I am deeply saddened by the way tigress Avni has been brutally murdered in #Yavatmal, #Maharashtra. #Justice4TigressAvni," Gandhi tweeted.

"It is nothing but a straight case of crime. Despite several requests from many stakeholders, Sh @SMungantiwar, Minister for Forests, #Maharashtra, gave orders for the killing. #Justice4TigressAvni," she said.

She said, "He has been doing this regularly and this is the third tiger being murdered besides several leopards and wild boars. #Justice4TigressAvni."

Speaking on the shooter, Gandhi said: "Every time he has used Hyderabad-based shooter Shafat Ali Khan, and this time his son has also appeared in the scene illegally to murder the tigress. #Justice4TigressAvni."

She called the killing of the tigress as 'illegal' act.

"His son was not authorised to kill. This is patently illegal. Despite the forest officials being committed to tranquilise, capture and qurantine the tigress, the trigger-happy shooter has killed her on his own under orders of Sh @SMungantiwar," she said.

"This ghastly murder has put two cubs at the edge of a sad death in the absence of their mother. #Justice4TigressAvni," she said.

"Shafat Ali Khan has killed 3 tigers, at least 10 leopards, a few elephants and 300 wild boar in Chandrapur, #Maharashtra. He is a criminal known for supplying guns to anti- nationals and for a suspected case of murder in #Hyderabad.I fail to understand why a state government should even bother about such a man let alone hire his services for illegal and inhuman acts," Gandhi said.

She said: "I am definitely going to take up this case of utter lack of empathy for animals as a test case. Legally, criminally as well as politically. #Justice4TigressAvni."

Gandhi said she will take up the matter of killing the tigress with the Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis.

"I will take up the matter very strongly with CM Maharashtra Shri @Dev_Fadnavis ji," Gandhi said.

Avni was killed on Friday.

A shoot-at-sight order had been issued by the state’s principal chief conservator of forest (PCCF) last month and was endorsed by the Supreme Court, reported Hindustan Times.

 

Image: facebook.comManekaGandhiOfficial