Chinkara hunting case: Cattle trader surrenders before court, arrested

“We arrested him formally at 4 pm on Wednesday and are interrogating him,” Ajubha Solanki, Range Forest Officer (RFO) of Naliya North said.

According to a forest offence report (FOR) lodged at Naliya North range forest office on January 10, some unidentified persons shot dead a chinkara in Samada on January 8, loaded its carcass in a car and sped away.

After the registration of the FOR, forest officers collected samples of blood and fur from the scene of alleged crime and sent them to the Regional Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Rajkot for analysis. The officers said the FSL has concluded that the blood and fur in the sample were of a gazelle.

“Blood stains and fur believed to be of the chinkara were found in the car. We have sent the samples to FSL to see if they match with the samples of blood and fur collected from the crime scene,” Solanki added.

According to the department, the car belonged to Akbar Hingorja from Daddhar village in Mandvi. Akbar allegedly had lent the car to his cousin Bhilal Hingorja, a resident of Mapar village. Bhilal, in turn, had lent the car to Lal Mamad Koreja, a resident of Gandhidham town in Kutch on January 8.

“During investigation, it emerged that Saiyed is a friend of Bhilal. Call records revealed that Saiyed was present at the crime scene when the gazelle was hunted,” Solanki said, adding that the car has since been released as directed by court.

Saiyed’ arrest came after the Supreme Court rejected his plea seeking protection against arrest on November 22 and directed him to surrender within two weeks. Hours before the SC deadline ended, Saiyed surrendered on Wednesday.

Saiyed had moved SC in May after the Gujarat High Court rejected his pre-arrest bail plea on April 11. Before the HC, the district and sessions court of Bhuj in Kutch, too, had rejected his anticipatory bail plea on March 24. Officers said Saiyed had moved the Bhuj court even as he didn’t respond to two summons served by the forest department on March 1 and 15.

“At least six criminal cases have been registered against Saiyed at Mandvi police station. By virtue of belonging to the Saiyed family, he commands respect among members of the minority community in western part of Kutch,” the RFO said. Saiyed will be produced before court on Thursday, he added.

Solanki said that Mustak Majothi, a resident of Bayath village, is also wanted in the case but has been evading arrest. “Prima facie, there were four to five persons in the car when the crime was committed,” he added.