The death of a translocated big cat was shrouded in mystery but there was a possibility of poisoning,Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said on Wednesday as he indicated that more heads might roll in the wake of the incident. Both the Central and state governments have failed to save the animal. Yet it appears to be a mystery. No bullet wound (was found). I think there is a very preponderant possibility of poisoning, Ramesh said as he visited the sanctuary amidst the controversy over the governments tiger revival plan. The minister said he arrived at the conclusion after talking to villagers and experts. The death of the male tiger,which happened to be the first one to be relocated in Sariska in 2008,seems to have been shrouded in mystery with the state forest officials claiming that the post-mortem report has not detected any unnatural substance. However the decomposed body was detected almost 72 hours after the death and some vital organs like tongue were missing. Taking responsibility for the shocking and disturbing incident which has cast doubts over the tiger translocation programme functioning,Ramesh said,I placed my faith in a lot of young officers who were posted here but they clearly did not fulfil their responsibility.
