Man kills leopard in self-defence

Athagarh: A villager killed a leopard in self-defence after the animal entered his farmhouse and attacked him. The incident took place at the farmhouse in Anantaprasad village under Narsinghpur West forest range in Athagarh division.

The villager, Subhranshu Bhol, was attacked by the leopard when he checked on his dogs barking on Friday night.

The leopard pounced on Bhol, causing deep wounds. In a struggle to save his life, the villager reportedly used a kitchen knife to stab the animal.

Bhol then alerted his father over phone. When his father reached the spot, he saw the leopard lying dead outside the farmhouse. Bhol, who was critically injured, was rushed to hospital. Forest officials arrived at the scene to recover the carcass and initiate an investigation into how the leopard entered the residential premises. The incident highlights rising human-wildlife conflict in the region, with previous cases of leopard poaching and incidents in the Athagarh forest division.