HYDERABAD: Task Force sleuths of the Hyderabad Police Commissionerate rescued 15 barn owls from a resident of Falaknuma on Tuesday. The accused, 22-year-old Kamran Ali Farooq of Teegalkunta in Falaknuma, was handed over by the police to the Forest Department for further legal action. The owls were sent to the Nehru Zoological Park in Hyderabad.
According to information from the police, the accused planned to sell each bird for anywhere between `10,000 to `1 lakh. Hyderabad Forest Department officials told Express that barn owls are often used by people who believe in superstitions for the purpose of black magic, in which blood of the bird is used for certain rituals.
During questioning, the accused revealed that he used to capture barn owls from areas in the city with old and large buildings, where the birds can be found nesting. He would then sell the birds for the purpose of black magic to mainly non-Telugu speaking people from other States.
As the barn owl is a Scheduled IV species under the Wildlife Protection Act, the Forest Department registered a case under relevant sections against the accused. An official of the Nehru Zoological Park said that the birds were found to be in a healthy condition and a decision will be taken regarding their release after directions from the Chief Wildlife Warden of the State.