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The Madhya Pradesh High Court has directed the Field Director of Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve to file a detailed status report regarding recent tiger deaths reported in the BTR, including cases of alleged unnatural deaths by February 25.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva and Justice Vinay Saraf issued the direction on February 11 while hearing a petition filed by wildlife expert Ajay Dubey. Petitioner Dubey filed the petition on January 4, seeking a detailed investigation into the tiger deaths in the state. He also alleged various irregularities in the probe of tiger deaths and accused the forest officials of negligence. During the hearing, advocate for the petitioner, Aditya Sanghi, submitted that even after the last reported date of January 20, 2026, more tiger deaths have been reported in the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve by unnatural causes or reasons other than fighting between the tigers. According to the order copy, the court said, "The petitioner has filed a chart detailing the reasons given for the deaths of the tigers. We note that in some of the instances, deaths have occurred on account of unnatural reasons, i.e. intervention of humans." "The Field Director, Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, is directed to file a status report with regard to the deaths of tigers that have been reported and also an action taken report in cases where unnatural deaths of tigers have been reported. The Field Director shall also indicate in the status report as to the steps taken to prosecute the persons who have been found responsible and action taken against them," the court added. The matter has been listed for further hearing on February 25. Notably, a total of 54 tiger deaths were recorded in Madhya Pradesh in 2025. In a sharp spike, nearly nine more tiger deaths have already been reported in just the first month of 2026 in Madhya Pradesh. (ANI)
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