Jalpaiguri: The Alipurduar chief judicial magistrate's court on Monday sentenced notorious poacher Lukash Basumatary to six years of rigorous imprisonment and fined him Rs 40,000 for illegal wildlife trade. This is the highest quantum of jail term awarded under the amended Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. The court also awarded the investigating officer 50% of the fine.
A Jaldapara National Park team led by Chilapata range officer Sudipta Ghosh arrested Basumatary on June 3 last year with a full leopard skin. During the probe, Basumatary confessed to his involvement in rhino poaching in 2015 and illegal arms smuggling from Manipur to Jaldapara.
He was previously convicted under the NDPS Act, where he allied with poaching kingpin Rikoch Narjinary and resumed wildlife crime after securing bail. Basumatary's conviction in a record eight months marks a key victory in Jaldapara park's crackdown on organised poaching networks.
Narjinary was arrested from Kamrup last June in a joint operation by Jaldapara forest division and Assam Police. Currently he is lodged in Jalpaiguri Central Jail.
"This judgment will send a strong message to potential poachers and wildlife criminals that they will be brought to justice. Also, protection and conservation of wildlife species is key to the conservation of nature," said Parveen Kaswan, DFO, Jaldapara Wildlife Division.
Raja Raut, secretary of Jalpaiguri Science and Nature Club, said: "This is a very good sign that trials in these cases are getting over in quick time. Such judgments will surely demotivate people with similar intentions."
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