Chinkara hunting: Army moves court for 'missing' witness

The army today moved a court in Barmer seeking a direction to the police to lodge an FIR in connection with the missing of a local witness in the Chinkara hunting case.

An application was moved in the court of the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) as civilian witness Sukhram is absconding and the Court of Inquiry (CoI), set-up by the army to probe the case, has been stalled due to his absence and alleged non-cooperation of forest department, a defence spokesperson said.

The army has also sought a direction from the court to forest officer BR Bhadu for appearing before the CoI in order to expedite the investigation, he said.

Five army personnel of a tank repair unit were booked after heads of three Chinkaras and uncooked meat was recovered  from a military camp in Neembla village in Barmer, 220 km from here, on last Friday.

The personnel were booked under the relevant sections of the Wildlife Protection Act-1972. Punishment for offences under these sections carry a maximum seven-year jail term.