Alipurduar: Man sentenced to 3-year RI for killing elephant with electric fence

Alipurduar: The Chief Judicial Magistrate of Alipurduar District Court has sentenced one Sandip Roy to three years of rigorous imprisonment (RI) and imposed a fine of Rs 30,000 for killing an adult female elephant using an electric fence.

Chief Judicial Magistrate Megh Dorjee Moktan announced the verdict on Thursday afternoon.

The case dates back to March 21, 2022, when forest officials from the South Raidak Range of the Buxa Tiger Reserve (East) found the body of an adult female elephant in a banana plantation in Shiltong, a remote forest village adjacent to the Buxa Tiger Reserve.

Electrical wires and electronic devices were recovered from the site. Upon examination, the forest officials determined that the elephant had been electrocuted in a deliberate act.

Following an investigation, local resident Sandip Roy was arrested the same day, and a case was filed against him under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. The autopsy report corroborated the initial findings, confirming electrocution as the cause of death. Since then, the case has been under trial, with hearings and testimonies taking place over

the past two years. Assistant Public Prosecutor Madan Gopal Sarkar stated: “In less than two years, Judge Megh Dorjee Moktan has delivered the final judgment in this case. The accused, Sandip Roy, has been sentenced under the Wildlife Conservation Act to three years in prison and a fine of Rs. 30,000. The judgment further stipulates an additional six months of imprisonment if the fine is not paid.”

Reacting to the verdict, Debashis Sharma, Deputy Field Director of Buxa Tiger Reserve (East), emphasized, “Elephants are Schedule 1 animals and a protected species under the Act. This judgment serves as a strong deterrent against harming these

animals, including through electrocution.”