Tiger skin was procured 6 months ago, reveals probe

Kolkata: Investigatioconducted by the wildlife control wing of the state Forest department into recovery of the skin of a Royal Bengal tiger has revealed that the skin was procured around six months ago from Madhya Pradesh and was to be handed over to a person near Kolkata Airport.

The forest officials suspect that the tiger skin could have been dispatched to some other country, which was prevented due to their timely intervention.

The Forest department had arrested two persons from a hotel located under Anandapur police station area near Kasba on Thursday evening and later arrested another person identified as Aninda Mukherjee from Kasba.

Mukherjee was trying to sell the tiger skin that was in his possession for six months and had roped in Tarak Halder and Ebrahim Mandal for fixing up customers.

The raid was conducted by the wildlife control wing of the department on the basis of source information. The duo had put up at the hotel and managed to strike up a deal for selling the skin.

Wildlife Conservationist and member of state Wildlife Board Joydip Kundu had said on Thursday that the skin may have been in someone's collection for a reasonable amount of time.

It may be recalled that a year ago on January 12, the state Forest department had caught a person red-handed and seized a leopard skin from his possession at Hatibagan area in North Kolkata.

The person had come with the skin at the residence of Kundu and also sought assistance from him in disposing the animal skin.