Mob attacks RFO office, flee with poaching accused

Chandrapur: In an unprecedented incident, a group of people, mostly women, raided Bhadrawati range forest office and whisked away an accused, nabbed on charges of poaching wild animals, from the forest custody.
Both forest and police departments have registered offences in this connection and have launched manhunt to nab the culprits.
Two pairs of leopards and bears were poached by using electrified wire in the forest under Ordnance Factory Chanda, and carcasses were recovered on February 1. Forest department had zeroed in on Piparbodi village under OF area and had arrested an accused Ravi Chetti on February 5.
Based on further investigations, Bhadrawati RFO, Swati Maheshkar, had raided the village again on Saturday evening and arrested other accused Vinod Chetti (19). As she brought the accused to RFO office in Bhadrawati, a mob of villagers belonging to same community and having same surname followed the accused to her office.
“The mob, mostly comprising women, came after us to RFO office. Even as we closed the main gate, they jumped over it. Some of the women twisted my hand with which I was holding the accused and whisked him away before our staff could respond,” said Maheshkar while talking to TOI.
Maheshkar claimed the behaviour of the assailant women, all kin of accused, took the range office staffers by surprise. The women were using abusive language and tearing their own clothes. Startled male staffers were helpless, she told.
Maheshkar called police, but the mob fled with the accused before the help could arrive. She informed that forest and police departments have registered offences in this connection and have launched manhunt to nab the accused and assailants.
PSO, Bhadrawati, Sunil Pawar, said the police have booked four people identified by Maheshkar. He informed that police team had raided the village to look for the absconding accused and the assailants, but entire block of around 10 to 15 families of the Chetti community is missing from the village. Police have issued lookout notice for the absconding accused.