DAVANAGERE: Sleuths of CCB and Karnataka Forest Department on Wednesday raided the farmhouse belonging to former Congress minister SS Mallikarjun in Davanagere and seized 10 blackbucks, seven spotted deer, three mongooses, seven wild boards and two wolves. The farmhouse is located behind Kalleshwara rice mill.
The raid came following a statement given by one Senthil, who was arrested on charges of selling deer skin and bones in Bengaluru. The raid was conducted by a team led by ACP CCB Reena Suvarna.The police also handed over Senthil to the local police and some of the workers of the mill have been taken into custody for questioning. ACP Reena Suvarna said that two people have been arrested for rearing the wild animals.
Animals shifted
The animals seized were on Thursday shifted to separate enclosures at Anagodu mini-zoo. The animals will be kept under strict quarantine after which they will be allowed to join other animals, said DFO NH Jagannath.
He told TNIE that the cases have been booked under various sections of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 and further investigation is on. He also said that all the animals rescued from the mill are healthy.
SS MALLIKARJUN CLARIFIES
Former minister SS Mallikarjun claimed that he has been rearing the animals only after obtaining the licence from the forest department in 2000. “An employee who was taking care of the animals had sold the parts of the spotted deer illegally without my knowledge,” he said.