Leopard snatches away 5-year-old girl in UP's Bahraich

LUCKNOW: A five-year-old girl resting on her grandmother’s lap was snatched away by a leopard in Bahraich on Thursday evening. A joint team of police and forest department was searching for the girl in nearby areas but she was yet to be traced till midnight.
The girl, identified as Priya Maurya, was with her grandmother Saumitra barely a few meters from her house in Majra Golhana of village Semari Malmala located near Vantangia forest under Murtiha forest range of Katarniaghat Wildlife Division, when the leopard attacked.
The villagers accused the local forest personnel of slow response to their alert and vandalised their vehicles and attacked them, leaving six of them injured. One of them is critical and undergoing treatment. Later, the police team rushed to the spot to control the situation.
District Forest Officer, Katarniaghat, Yashwant told TOI that the vehicles were damaged while the rangers were attacked by the villagers with sticks and iron rods. “As soon as we got the information about the child being dragged away by a feline, UP 112 was immediately pressed into service,” he said.