BAHAWALPUR: A leopard that had crossed into Pakistan’s Cholistan area from India, succumbed to the injuries caused by a chasing mob on Saturday night after it was caught by a wildlife department team near Chak 73-DB, Yazman, about 30kms from here.

The wild beast, that had been first sighted a week ago, had attacked a man, Nathu, at a pond near Narwala in the vicinity of Din Garh in Cholistan’s forest pocket, injuring his wrist. Punjab wildlife department’s teams had been dispatched to the area to look for the beast. The department officials had initially declared it was a wild cat and not a leopard.

According to locals, the leopard attacked some residents of 73/DB village and injured two of them -- Allah Rakha and Behwan Shah. Afterwards, the villagers chased the beast that entered a wheat field. The locals surrounded the field and informed the wildlife team about it.

According to Wildlife District Officer Mujahid Kaleem, during the chase the villagers hit the beast with clubs and lathis, injuring it severely, before his team arrived at the spot.

He said the wildlife game watchers overpowered the beast after tranquilising it with a gun. During the exercise, a department driver, Naeem Abbasi, was injured by the leopard, he added.

The department claimed that the beast later succumbed to the injuries caused by the chasing villagers while being transported to Bahawalpur Zoo.

MOVES ACE: On the direction of a district and sessions judge, a wine merchant has filed a complaint with the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) to register a case against seven police officials for implicating him in a fake case and taking action against him in violation of the law.

Raju Mahaishwari, owner of the United Wine Merchant, Karachi, filed the complaint with the ACE Bahawalpur director to register an FIR against seven police officials of Musafirkhana police station, including Sub-Inspector Meraj Muhammad, ASIs Shah Zain, Muhammad Aslam, and four constables Muhammad Aslam, Muhammad Amjad, Muhammad Fayyaz and Ghulam Mustafa.

District and Sessions Judge Muhammad Rashid Qamar, during the hearing of the case, had found the police officials guilty and directed petitioner Raju Mahaishwari to approach the ACE for the registration of a case against them.

According to the orders of the judge, the police officials had illegally registered a case against Raju, kept his three employees in illegal confinement for six weeks, got arranged a press conference by the former district police officer for obtaining Rs100,000 cash prize from the inspector general of Punjab police despite the direction issued by the Lahore High Court’s Bahawalpur bench.

The police officials, on Feb 14, had intercepted Mahaishwari’s truck laden with 16,800 wine bottles, purchased under a valid permit of the Excise and Taxation Department from Rawalpindi and arrested his three employees. Besides, when the alcohol was returned to Mahaishwari on court orders, there was a shortage of 164 bottles.

PROTEST: The Bahawalpur Union of Journalists, with collaboration of All Pakistan Clerks Association, held a protest to condemn attack on journalist Hamid Mir.