BENGALURU: In a jaw-dropping episode straight out of a wildlife thriller, a quick-thinking and brave farmer stopped a hungry leopard in its tracks — literally by its tail!
The incident occurred Monday during a leopard-rescue operation undertaken by forest department staff at Chikkakottigehalli, 160km from Bengaluru, in Tumakuru district.
The hero of the day is 43-year-old Yoganand alias Anand alias ‘Bombay’, a nickname he earned for running away from home to Mumbai for work when he was young. The act of him catching the wild cat by its tail had left social media platforms buzzing.
The drama unfolded when residents of Chikkakottigehalli spotted the leopard near an agricultural field around the village. Already, the spotted cat had devoured a few livestock from surrounding villages.
The terrified vil lagers alerted the forest department. A 15-member team from the department descended on the village with a cage and started combing the area for fresh pugmarks near paddy fields.
A few local men, including Yoganand, joined the search while some curious women and children stood at a distance to watch the action. “The pugmarks could be seen all over the paddy fields, but we couldn’t spot the animal. After placing the cage, we started fanning in teams of three by holding nets,” a forest officer told TOI.
Catching leopard by its tail, man saves villagers from jaws of death
As the search intensified, the leopard suddenly leapt out of a bush – a few metres from where the officials had just passed. “On seeing the animal, everyone screamed in fear and jumped away from it. At the same time, we threw the nets on it twice, but the leopard slipped free each time,” the officer added.
What sent shivers down everyone’s spine was when the animal headed straight towards the women and children. That is when Yoganand got into action: Sensing imminent danger, he lunged at the leopard and pulled its tail.
Yoganand told TOI: “I realised that both women and children were in the line of danger. The leopard could attack the crowd and someone would get injured. In retaliation, the villagers could target the leopard with wooden logs and other materials, harming it. Also, I realised that the leopard was moving slowly, as if it had some health issues. Trusting God, I caught the leopard by its tail and pulled back with all my strength. The leopard turned around, but the forest officials acted swiftly by throwing the net on it in the nick of time. The animal was captured.”
Anupama H, district forest officer (DFO), Tumakuru, told TOI they shifted the leopard to a rescue centre in Mysuru. “It was a male leopard, aged around four years. It was weak, probably due to non-availability of prey. Also, it had some vision-related problems. To get it cured, we shifted it to the rescue centre,” she said.
