JHELUM VALLEY (Kashmir English): In yet another shocking incident of wildlife brutality, a rare leopard was killed in the forests of Chakothi, Compartment 19c.
According to reliable sources, the animal was first shot and injured before being poisoned and killed in an extremely painful manner.
The brutality of the event went beyond the initial act of killing. The hunters dissected the leopard by sharing out its skin together with teeth along with tail and meat and legs.
Incidents showing the brutally dismembered leopard can be found across various social media platforms, where they created massive public anger.
Despite the shocking incident, the Wildlife Department has not taken any action yet, which creates doubts about their role and their responsibilities.
The situation became even more alarming when the hunters took photographs of the dead Rare Leopard and posted these pictures on social media.
The hunters’ excessive cruelty has shown that law enforcement fails while authorities display no care about the situation in the region.
The public has displayed substantial criticism regarding rare wildlife illegal hunting as officials within the Azad Kashmir Wildlife Department show negligence and possible collusion of officials within the Wildlife Department in Azad Kashmir.
They say that each year, dozens of rare animals fall victim to illegal hunting due to these systemic failures.
The forests of Jhelum Valley, home to many rare species, are also seeing an increase in the hunting of exotic birds, particularly colourful parrots.
Poachers, with support from local inhabitants, use traps to capture birds, which they transport to markets in other settlement areas for substantial profit.
Wildlife experts have specified that illegal hunting endangers both ecological systems and natural biodiversity and regional beauty.
Researchers argue that this animal mistreatment desecrates their right to survival because it demonstrates a fall from moral standards instead of human superiority.
The local population insists upon implementing an urgent and stringent prohibition against unlawful hunting and wildlife trafficking.
The Chief Secretary of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), along with the Minister of Wildlife and Fisheries and Jhelum Valley officials, need to take immediate action to conduct punishment and implement protective measures for wildlife.
