Severed head of Churna tiger found near village where a tribal questioned in case died by suicide

In a fresh twist to the mysterious beheading of a tiger in the core area of Satpura Tiger Reserve (STR), the missing severed head was found on Thursday morning near the village where a tribal man questioned in the beheading case had killed himself on July 2.

Madhya Pradesh principal chief conservation of forests – PCCF (wildlife), J.S. Chauhan confirmed to THE WEEK that the decomposed head was that of the tiger whose carcass was found on June 25 in the Churna range in the core of STR. He said the forest department was close to arresting the culprits in the beheading case.

The decomposed head was found on a culvert on a local streamlet about 300-400 meters from the Dhansai village where 36-year-old Aneesh Uikey, a gypsy driver and a part-time traditional healer, had hanged himself to death. The spot of recovery is within the forest area bordering compartment 436 of the buffer range of STR and revenue areas, about 200 meters from the Dhansai post of the STR on Dhansai-Bhimkund road, a note by the forest department said. The head and some other remains were seen being eaten by dogs by a beat guard who was on patrol duty with a security person early on the morning of Thursday.

The forest department note further said the dog squads called on the spot from STR and Ratapani Sanctuary marked some places in the Dhansai village where further probe was on, indicating some link of the beheading case to the village.

The severed head and the other remains found on the spot have been sent out to the Wildlife Forensic and Health Centre, Jabalpur for further tests.

Sources said there is a feeling that the tiger head was abandoned by culprits due to the intense probe and search being conducted by the state Tiger Strike Force (TSF) and STR teams.

Chauhan had earlier told THE WEEK that based on prima facie evidence it seemed that the tiger's death was natural, after which it was beheaded probably by some local tribal people involved in black magic/traditional healing practices. He said these practitioners use tiger heads in rituals promising riches.

The teams have compiled a list of some suspects, including locals involved in black magic/traditional healing practices, and had been questioning them. Aneesh Uikey and three others from Dhansai village had been picked up by forest department teams for questioning on July 1, but were let go on the same night. Uikey’s body had been found hanging in a farm away from his home on July 2.

Speaking to THE WEEK, his uncle Kamal Uikey had expressed apprehension that Aneesh might have killed himself out of the pressure of the questioning as he had no family or financial problems.

Sub-divisional officer of police (SDOP) of Sarni (Betul district), under which the Dhansai village falls, told THE WEEK that there is no headway regarding the cause of the suicide, but the probe was still on. He had earlier told THE WEEK that according to preliminary post-mortem reports, the death was a suicide. Jain also confirmed the recovery of the decomposed tiger head close to the Dhansai village and said the police were helping the forest officials as required.

The beheading of a tiger in the heavily patrolled core area of STR, being an unusual occurrence, caused quite some ripples with activists suspecting poaching behind the death and missing head. This was bolstered by a red alert issued by the central Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) on June 30 regarding poaching activities by organised gangs in and around various tiger reserves of the country including STR.

Alleging negligence and other irregularities, wildlife activist Ajay Dubey demanded CBI inquiry into the tiger's death and a judicial probe into Uikey’s suicide.

Dubey raised questions over the claim that the decomposed head is of Churna tiger, saying the claims of the forest department had several inconsistencies and the claim was made even before getting scientific reports (on the remains) and since the suspected poachers were absconding for 12 days. He said there might be a conspiracy between the poachers and STR officials to bury the case, especially after the suicide of Uikey and thus probe by an outside agency was important.