Golfer Jyoti Randhawa arrested for 'poaching' in buffer zone

Asia's former top-ranked golfer Jyoti Randhawa and an ex-Navy man Mahesh Virajdar were arrested on Wednesday by the Uttar Pradesh Forest Department for allegedly poaching a jungle fowl, and for unlaw entry in the Motipur range of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in the Bahraich district. A local Bahraich magistrate has granted the forest department 14-day judicial custody of the duo after they were charged under 11 sections of the Wildlife Protection and three
sections of the Indian Forest Act.

Divisional Forest Officer Gyan Prakash Singh, who made the arrest, and Ramesh Kumar Pandey, field director of the tiger reserve told DNA that Randhawa and his accomplice had allegedly killed a jungle fowl, a bird protected under Schedule IV of the Wildlife Protection Act. Randhawa was arrested by a patrolling team of ten who first chased the golfer's Isuzu vehicle and then had to intercept it. The arrest was made at 5.30 am before daybreak in Motipur range, which falls in the buffer zone of Katarniaghat wildlife sanctuary, part of the larger Dudhwa tiger reserve in UP's Terai region.

The patrolling team — five Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) guards of the tiger reserve, one sub-inspector, one range officer, one forester and two forest guards — recovered the dead jungle fowl from Randhawa's vehicle. Along with the bird, a Sambar skin, a .22 rifle, 80 live bullets, three used shells, searchlights and Rs.36,600 cash were also recovered from his car, Singh said, adding that when Randhawa was initially arrested, he claimed that the skin of the dead animal was that of a wild boar. However, it was ascertained to be of a Sambar deer. Randhawa reportedly also claimed that the boar was killed near his father's farmhouse property located nearby.

"The jungle fowl recovered from the vehicle bore gun shot wounds. As per procedure, the two were taken for a medical examination, and after producing them before a magistrate, we have been granted 14-day judicial custody," Singh said. He added that the jungle fowl and the Sambar skin would be sent to the Wildlife Institute of forensic examination.

Meanwhile, Pandey said that near the year-end, there are higher instances of poaching, so the field staff is on high alert. "It is a clear cut case of poaching as they were in possession of wildlife articles. They also made an unlawful entry and were inside the forest. They might have used a public road that passes through Katarniaghat to enter the buffer zone," Pandey said.

In October, Randhawa was also involved in the operation to capture man-eater Avni tigress in Maharashtra and had brought Cane Corse hunter dogs to aid the tigress' capture.