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Qureshi Charged

A charge sheet was filed on 29 November against Shabbir Hasan Qureshi and the other accused relating to the seizure of three tiger skins and tiger bones in Allahabad in December 2007. The case was recently handed over to the CBI and the filing came just in time to meet the one year deadline required by the UP Gangster and Anti Social Activities Act under which Qureshi was booked, along with The Wild Life (Protection) Act.

This led to Qureshi’s bail being rejected yesterday by the Allahabad High Court since there were no longer technical grounds for bail. The applications of four other accused, including Qureshi’s two sons Siraj Ahmad and Sarfraj Ahmad, were also rejected by the Court. A few days ago Qureshi’s properties in Allahabad and Fatehpur (worth US$ 400,000) were seized under the Money Laundering Act, following his conviction in the Katni Court on 11 November 2008. The case was fought by WPSI’s Advocate on behalf of the Katni Forest Department.

The seizure in Allahabad on 4 December 2007 was carried out by the Special Task Force of the Uttar Pradesh Police with the assistance of WPSI. It was one of the biggest wildlife cases this decade and 16 people were arrested – Qureshi, three other traders, two tiger poachers and ten female couriers. The case was a landmark for wildlife enforcement as it included the arrest of the three key elements of the killing of wild tigers: poachers, couriers and buyers.

Investigations indicate that one of the tigers was killed in Kanha Tiger Reserve in the state of Madhya Pradesh, and another in Tadoba Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra. It is not known where the third tiger came from.