CHENNAI: The forest department has brought 11 exotic animals, including seven African serval cats, two Lar Gibbons and two tufted capuchins, under seizure from an Erode farm following the registration of a non-bailable wildlife offence against exotic-animal trader S K Keshavanathan.
The animals are currently being kept at the farm itself under the watch of forest officials and will be shifted to Arignar Anna Zoological Park, Vandalur, or an appropriate recognised rescue centre, subject to directions from the court, forest officials told TNIE.
The seizure list shows two adult male serval cats, two adult female serval cats and three serval kittens (one male and two females), besides one male and one female Lar Gibbon and one male and one female tufted capuchin.
“The animals have been brought under seizure. For now, they are being kept at the same facility as there are no suitable enclosures or cages available immediately to accommodate such large exotic animals. We are awaiting court directions on where they should be shifted,” a senior forest official said.
The action follows a detailed inspection of Keshavanathan’s facility, which uncovered a large collection of exotic birds, mammals and reptiles. The department subsequently booked a case under the Wildlife Protection Act over alleged violations relating to possession and transfer of scheduled exotic species.
Officials said Keshavanathan initially appeared before the Erode DFO and assured that he would cooperate with the inquiry and return with the necessary documents. He subsequently went absconding, officials confirmed.
The whole illegal exotic animals got exposed after Keshavanathan supplied a pair of Lar Gibbons to Chennai businessman C K Ranganathan, at whose residence actor Vikram was filmed cuddling the animals. The video was posted on Instagram and subsequently went viral, triggering a wider investigation into the origin and movement of the Gibbons.
Under Section 49M of the Wildlife Protection Act, possession, transfer and breeding of living species listed in Schedule IV are subject to mandatory reporting and registration. The law requires possession and transfers to be reported to the authorities and prohibits possession, transfer or breeding except in conformity with Section 49M and the rules made under it.
The Lar Gibbon (Hylobates lar) is listed in CITES Appendix I, putting it under the highest level of CITES protection. For offences involving a specimen of a species listed in Appendix I of Schedule IV, Section 51 provides for three to seven years’ imprisonment and a minimum fine of Rs 25,000 and officials said it is an non-bailable offence.
The department is now focusing on establishing the source of all the seized animals, the chain of transfers and whether the required possession, transfer and birth declarations were made.
Under Section 49Q, scheduled specimens involved in an offence become government property, and living specimens that cannot be returned to the country of origin can be housed in a recognised zoo or rescue centre.