NAGPUR: A bail application was withdrawn Thursday after the Nagpur bench of Bombay high court began dictating its order, rejecting the plea. Kapliyan Mung, havaldar with Assam Rifles, was accused in a large trans-border tiger poaching network, reports Vaibhav Ganjapure. Mung had moved HC through Meghalaya advocate general and senior counsel Amit Kumar seeking bail in a case arising from a major wildlife trafficking investigation conducted by the forest department in Rajura in Maharashtra’s Chandrapur district. “After hearing the matter, when this court showed its disinclination to grant bail, the senior counsel appearing for the petitioner sought permission to withdraw the application. He seeks liberty to file a fresh application before the trial court after six months,” Justice M M Nerlikar said, while disposing of the case. Investigators said the case exposed a poaching syndicate operating across central India that allegedly hunted tigers and trafficked their body parts through international routes. The investigation so far identified 21 accused, of whom 15 were arrested. Officials said havaldar Kapliyan Mung’s network included individuals from Meghalaya, Manipur and Mizoram who allegedly worked with members of a local Pardhi gang to hunt tigers. The group is suspected to have been involved in poaching of tigers since 2018, and investigators believe it may be responsible for the killing of around 45 tigers across central India.
