Darshan Thoogudeepa, Nikhil Kumaraswamy, Jaggesh hand over lockets for forensic tests

Bengaluru: Following the arrest of Varthur Santhosh, a contestant from the Bigg Boss reality show, for wearing a tiger’s claw locket, various organisations are calling on the Government to take action against celebrities who also possess such animal claw accessories.

The possession or display of animal organs or parts, including tiger claws, is a clear violation of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. This Act deems such actions punishable offences, with the aim of protecting endangered species from harm. Offenders may face imprisonment for a period ranging from 3 to 7 years.

Several well-known individuals, including Kannada actor and BJP Rajya Sabha member Jaggesh, son of former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and politician-actor Nikhil Kumaraswamy, Kannada superstar Darshan Thoogudeepa, film producer Rockline Venkatesh, and renowned religious seer Avadhoota Vinay Guruji, have been widely shared on social media, depicting them with                  tiger-related artefacts.

In response to the viral image of Darshan wearing a tiger claw, a team of three forest officers visited his residence in R.R. Nagar. Since the actor was not present at home, officials recorded his statement over the phone and issued a notice for him to appear for an inquiry. No pendant was seized during this visit.

A complaint against Darshan had been filed with the Forest Department in May 2022, but no action had been taken until now. A separate team of six forest officials visited the residence of Jaggesh in Malleswaram and conducted a search for any wildlife parts and issued a notice to Jaggesh’s wife, Parimala.

Forest Department officials also visited Nikhil Kumaraswamy’s house and the residence of Rockline Venkatesh, issuing notices for the possession of tiger claws. Nikhil Kumaraswamy clarified that reports suggesting he wore a tiger’s claw pendant during his marriage ceremony are false. He explained that the pendant was artificial and received as a gift, urging against the spread of misinformation.

A photograph of Godman Vinay Guruji sitting on a tiger pelt went viral, leading to a complaint against him. It has now been revealed that Amarendra Kiriti of Shivamogga presented the tiger skin to Vinay Guruji’s Dattashram at Gaurigadde in Koppa taluk of Chikkamagalur district after contacting the Forest Department about two years ago.

A possession certificate for the tiger pelt had been issued by the Forest Department itself. According to Amarendra, the tiger skin had been in the family’s possession for 80 years. Reports from Bengaluru this morning said that the lockets owned by Darshan, Nikhil Kumaraswamy and Jaggesh have been returned to the Forest Department for forensic tests.

Forest officials conducted a search at the office of priest Dhananjaya Swami and the Shaneshwara Swamy Temple at Bidanagere in Kunigal taluk of Tumakuru district. They found one of the staffers, Anil, in possession of an ‘artificial’ tiger claw encased in gold and seized it for forensic testing.

STF constituted

The Forest Department has taken decisive action in response to the numerous complaints regarding the possession of tiger claws by celebrities and Godmen. To address this issue and review past cases involving wildlife artefacts, a Special Task Force (STF) has been constituted. The STF has been tasked with providing a report within one week and it is under the leadership of Kumar Pushkar, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife).

The Task Force comprises several key members, including the Chief Conservators of Forest from Bengaluru, Hassan, Chikkamagaluru and Shivamogga, as well as the Deputy Conservators of Forest from Bengaluru Urban, Tumakuru, Koppal and Shivamogga districts. The formation of this Task Force was initiated by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest.