Patna: Authorities in Patna have arrested two men accused of smuggling endangered wildlife, after recovering a leopard skin and body parts of a monitor lizard during a raid by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI).
The suspects, who had disguised themselves as religious mendicants, were detained on September 17 following a covert operation based on intelligence inputs, officials said. A freshly poached leopard skin, described by investigators as “emitting a foul odour”, was seized alongside Hathjodi – the reproductive organ of a monitor lizard.
Investigators believe the men were part of a wider network involved in the poaching and trafficking of leopards and monitor lizards, with the contraband being supplied to different parts of India.
Both species are protected under Schedule I of India’s Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, which makes hunting, trade or possession of their body parts a criminal offence. They are also listed under Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), prohibiting all international commercial trade.
In a statement, the DRI said the operation highlighted the growing threat of wildlife trafficking and underlined its commitment to protecting biodiversity. Officials added that investigations were continuing to uncover the extent of the smuggling network and possible links across the country.
