Bhavnagar, August 9: A man in western India has been arrested and remanded to judicial custody after a video emerged showing him approaching and recording a lion while it was feeding on a cattle carcass, the state’s forest department said on Thursday.
The incident took place near Talli village in the Talaja range of Gujarat’s Bhavnagar district. In the footage, which circulated on social media earlier this week, the lion charges at the man as he moves dangerously close. Onlookers can be heard shouting to distract the animal while the man continues filming before stepping back.
Forest officials from the Shetrunji Wildlife Division identified the man as local resident Gautam Shiyal and detained him on Wednesday. He was charged under the Wildlife Protection Act for disturbing and endangering a protected species.
Shiyal was presented before a court in Talaja town, where his bail plea was rejected. Authorities said he has been sent to jail pending further legal proceedings.
Lions are a protected species in India, with most of the country’s population found in and around Gujarat’s Gir National Park. Authorities have repeatedly warned against disturbing the animals, which are known to stray into nearby villages and farmland.
