This story is from April 6, 2018

Cop's son, doctor among blackbuck hunters arrested in Bidar

Cop's son, doctor among blackbuck hunters arrested in Bidar
HYDERABAD: Hunters from Hyderabad, including a medical doctor, were arrested by the Bidar police for killing black bucks at Halsur village of Basavakalyan. Additional Superintendent of Police, Bidar, Hari Babu told TOI on telephone from Bidar that the three-member gang had what it looked like a complete professional set-up to hunt down blackbucks.
"They had a customised vehicle that looked as if it had been made to be used for poaching purposes," he said.
Out of the three hunters arrested, one of them is a medical doctor. Another told the police that he was the son of a police officer who had served in the anti-naxalite wing.
Travelling all the way to Bidar which is 145 km from Hyderabad was a habit for the gang. Those arrested were Dr Mujahid Ali Khan, Syed Raza and Yakoob. "They have been visiting Bidar for the purpose of hunting and in recent times there were here at least two more times," Hari Babu said. While one local person who assisted them was also arrested, another person is also said to be associated.
The arrested gang members have been booked under The Wild Life Protection Act, 1972. Police have found that the gang members were in possession of sophisticated weapons. "We will mention all what we found in the chargesheet that will be filed," Hari Babu said.
The hunters were arrested last week when police found that they had hunted one black buck and two local deer. During questioning by the police, one of the gang members reportedly told the police that they had been coming there routinely for hunting. "People of the nearby villages have told us not long ago they used to see thousands of black bucks in the area. Now the number has dwindled to just a few hundreds," a police official said.
Some of the black bucks get killed when they get in touch with solar fencing in the fields. There are also been regular instance of poaching by hunters. With the arrest of the gang from Hyderabad, Bidar police have taken up a thorough investigation to probe if more gangs are operating and how many more are involved.
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About the Author
Ch Sushil Rao

Sushil Rao is Editor-Special Reports, at The Times of India, Hyderabad. He began his journalism career at the age of 20 in 1988. He is a gold medalist in journalism from the Department of Communication and Journalism, Arts College, Osmania University, Hyderabad from where he did his post-graduation from. He has been with The Times of India’s Hyderabad edition since its launch in 2000. He has also done an introductory course in film studies from the Film and Television Institute of India, Pune, and also from the Central University of Kerala equipping himself with the knowledge of filmmaking for film criticism. He has authored four books. In his career spanning 34 years, he has worked for five newspapers and has also done television reporting. He was also a web journalist during internet’s infancy in the mid 1990s in India. He covers defence, politics, diaspora, innovation, administration, the film industry, Hyderabad city and Telangana state, and human interest stories. He is also a podcaster, blogger, does video reporting and makes documentaries.

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