In a shocking piece of news, five fishermen have been booked for allegedly killing and consuming a dolphin at Yamuna River in Uttar Pradesh's Kaushambi district. One of the fishermen has been arrested by the police. The state forest department took cognisance of a viral video of the fishermen and launched an official investigation into the matter.
According to a complaint filed by Chail forest ranger Ravindra Kumar on Monday, the incident occurred on July 22 on the banks of Nasirpur village in the Pipri police station area, where a Gangetic dolphin was trapped in a net and later killed and consumed by the five fishermen.
A video of the incident went viral on social media. The accused were seen carrying the dolphin carcass on their shoulders before consuming it.
One of the fishermen, Ranjeet, was apprehended by police and lodged in police custody at Pipri police station, while the others managed to escape arrest. The police are currently locating the whereabouts of the remaining accused.
The police have registered a case against the accused, identified as Ranjeet, Sanjay, Diwan, Babaji and Gendlal, under various sections of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 at the Pipri police station. Notably, the Ganges River Dolphin is India's national aquatic animal and is classified among endangered species.
(with inputs from Vivek Pandey)
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