NEW DELHI, June 17: An Indian court on Friday rejected an anticipatory bail application filed by former cricket captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, who is wanted by police in connection with a poaching case.

The former cricketer and eight other suspects have been charged with killing a black buck, an endangered species of antelope. They are also accused of killing two rabbits in central Indian state of Haryana.

Under India’s wildlife protection laws, the accused, if proved guilty, could face up to seven years in prison.

Police in Haryana intercepted two vehicles on night of June 3 carrying eight accused and carcasses of a black buck and two rabbits. Police seized guns and dead animals and let the men go.

A case under India’s stringent wildlife law was filed a day later. One person, said to be a guide from a village in Jhajjhar was Arrested and released on bail.

The seven others, including Pataudi, have been on run for two Weeks and have failed to present themselves before Haryana police despite several summons.

They include Shashi Singh, managing director of AVL India Software which has its headquarters in Graz, Austria. An employee at AVL office in Indian capital said Singh had not attended work for past two weeks.

Pataudi’s film star son Saif Ali Khan and fellow actor Salman Khan are currently involved in a drawn-out trial for killing a black buck in 1998. They have denied charges.

Married to former film star Sharmila Tagore, Pataudi played 46 Test matches for Indian team between 1961 and 1975. Nicknamed ‘Tiger’, he was India’s youngest cricket captain at age of 21.—PPI