The Seventh Court of Judge P.D. Makwana on Thursday found the accused guilty of killing six lions — three each on March 3 and March 30 last year — and gave the sentence. The court also imposed a fine of Rs.10,000 on each of them.

Twenty-one people, originally from Panna in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, were arrested from Una village, 180 km from here, on April 6, 2007 after the carcasses of the six lions were found with various parts removed. One of the accused, a woman, died later.

Keshav Kumar, Inspector-General of Police who led the investigation, said: “This is the first known case in India in which lions were hunted for trade.”

According to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the gang used to trap lions and kill them to retrieve body parts that could be sold in illegal markets for high profits.

According to the public prosecutor, two lion claws were recovered from the main accused, Kuntar Singh and Nanaka Singh, during their arrest.

The remaining accused were arrested based on the information provided by the two. All of them remained in judicial custody throughout the trial as the Gujarat High Court denied bail to them.

“The trial was relatively fast for a wildlife case, which was completed within 18 months of the crime,” advocate Saurabh Sharma of the NGO Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), who assisted the prosecution, said in a statement in New Delhi.

‘Critically endangered’

The Gir forest in Saurashtra region is the only place in India where the ‘critically endangered’ Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica) are found. A survey conducted in 2005 estimated the presence of 359 lions there. Lions are poached for bones that are used in traditional Chinese medicines, and its claws are used as amulets, WTI vice-chairman Ashok Kumar said. — IANS