Randhawa’s bail plea to be heard on January 7

SHAHJAHANPUR: A bail application was filed in the case of ace golfer Jyoti Randhawa in the district court of Bahraich on Wednesday. The court is set to take a decision on January 7 as adjournment was sought by the forest department. The bail applications of 13 accused arrested in December by officials of Dudhwa tiger reserve (DTR) have been rejected by the district judge of Lakhimpur Kheri.

Randhawa was arrested in Motipur range of Katarniaghat wildlife sanctuary of DTR along with his friend Mahesh Birajdar on December 26. The forest officials had recovered a telescope-mounted .22 rifle fitted with a silencer, 80 cartridges, a range finder, carcass of a jungle fowl and hide of a sambar from his vehicle. He was booked under various sections of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and sent to Bahraich district jail.

When TOI contacted Dudhwa field director Ramesh Pandey for an update on Randhawa’s case, he said, “We have collected strong evidences against Randhawa and we will need his custody for further investigation. Any person harming wildlife species is a criminal and shouldn’t be spared whether he is an actor or a sportsperson.”