Investigation Found Asghar Ali Khan Was Not Authorized To Kill Tigress Avni, But The Case Against Him Has Been Closed

There is another twist in the controversy over the killing of Tigress T1 aka Avni, the alleged man-eater which was shot dead in Maharashtra's Yavatmal district in November.

Just days after the Maharashtra government gave a clean chit to Asghar Ali Khan, the son of shooter Nawab Shafath Ali Khan, a new report suggests the state committee probe found him guilty of unauthorized shooting and killing.

“It is clear that Asghar Ali Khan is prima facie guilty of unauthorized shooting and killing of T1. He appears to have clandestinely removed the weapons as well as scheduled drugs used in the operation to Hyderabad without informing the authorities. This opens the possibility of such important evidence being tampered with. Therefore, appropriate cases should be immediately registered against Asghar Ali Khan under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, by the forest authorities and under Arms Act, 1959, and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, by the police authorities,”The Times of India, quoting from the committee's findings reported.

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The report which was filed on December 5 contradicts the findings of the Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra which gave a clean chit to Asgar Ali, who shot dead Avni, while only his father Shafath Ali was authorized to do so.

FDCM officials had written a letter to the Hyderabad Police Commissioner stating that Asghar Ali has been cleared of all charges.

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It also said that “no violations of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, or Arms Act 1959 is found by Asghar Ali Khan, who was authorized to shoot and he shot T1 in self-defence.”?

Earlier, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) probe had rejected the self-defence theory.

The state committee report was made public only after the controversy over the clean chit to Asgar Ali.

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It is still unclear if Asgar Ali who has been cleared by one agency will be probed based on the findings of the state committee.

Times of India quoting FDCM managing director Dr N Rambabu reported that the investigating officer, who gave the clean chit to Asghar, is not the final authority and the government will take a final call on initiating proceedings against him.

Avni, a tigress, which had two cubs was shot dead on November 2 by Asgar Ali, despite various attempts by activists and wildlife enthusiasts to keep her alive.

They also claim that the allegation of Avni being a maneater was not established beyond doubt.? ?