Villager dies after foresters open fire on suspected smugglers gang in Jalpaiguri

 According to sources in the forest department, around 20 men entered the Diana forest in the western Dooars to cut down trees illegally

TT, Jalpaiguri, 26.05.24 : One person was killed and another injured when foresters opened fire on a gang of suspected timber smugglers in Jalpaiguri district on Saturday afternoon.

According to sources in the forest department, around 20 men entered the Diana forest in the western Dooars to cut down trees illegally.

“They had even cut down a large tree. A team of three forest guards challenged them. The smugglers attacked the guards who in response opened fire in self-defence,” said Vikash V, the Jalpaiguri divisional forest officer.

The department, he said, has filed a complaint at Nagrakata police station for the attack and cutting down trees.

The deceased was Shambhuman Munda, 34, a resident of the Diana line on the Bamandanga-Tondu tea estate. Chhattu Kohar, a 27-year-old from Bamandanga model village, was injured in the firing. He has been admitted to a local hospital.

Kailash Gope, a resident of the tea estate, said Munda had sent cattle to the forest for grazing but the animals didn’t return on Friday night.

“Today morning, he went to the forest searching for the cattle. It seems he was also collecting firewood in the forest. We want to know why foresters have fired at him. The bullet hit his chest and he was found dead,” said Gope.

Priya Tigga, a Trinamool Congress member of the local panchayat, raised questions about the incident. “The guards could have stopped him without firing at him. We want the forest department to provide a job to one of his family members.”