19-Month-Old Cheetah Fatally Shot In India; Two Brothers Arrested In Connection With His Death
Two brothers have been arrested in connection with the fatal shooting of a 19-month-old male cheetah found wounded outside India’s Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh.
According to a November 2 report by The Indian Express, citing Madhya Pradesh’s Special Task Force, the suspects were identified as Bhagwan Singh and Pritam Singh. Investigators recovered the firearm allegedly used in the shooting, and a case was registered against the brothers under India’s Wildlife Protection Act.
The young male, identified as KNG22 and born to cheetah Nirva, was found injured on October 25 and taken to a veterinary facility in Jabalpur for treatment.
Veterinarians performed emergency surgery, removing five firearm pellets from the cheetah’s body. Despite their efforts to save him, he sadly succumbed to his injuries on October 27. Medical examinations confirmed that the pellets had caused multiple internal injuries.
India launched Project Cheetah in 2022, seventy years after cheetahs were declared extinct in the country. The effort began with eight cheetahs from Namibia, followed by 12 from South Africa in 2023. India’s environment ministry and National Tiger Conservation Authority lead the program, working with the Wildlife Institute of India, state forest departments, and international conservation partners.
The killing of this young cheetah is a tragic loss for efforts to restore cheetahs to their historic range in India. These efforts must be matched by lasting protection from poaching wherever cheetahs roam. They do not recognize park boundaries, and their protection must extend far beyond them.
