The foresters, who have launched an investigation into suspected poaching of the five year old at Basavanagiri, a tribal hamlet bordering Nagarahole tiger reserve, are collecting evidence even as they could handover the case to the police for further investigation. This is following medical reports that the tiger could have been shot at from a close range with a fire arm.

Following the revelation, the forest department had registered a case and filed the First Information Report to H D Kote court under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. As the medical examination suggest use of fire arms, the foresters are seeking to enlist the support of the cops. "We'd invoked provisions contained in the Wildlife Protection Act. As fire arm is suspected to have been used, the Arms Act, 1959 has to be invoked and the cops have the authority to do it," DCF (Mysuru circle) V Karikalan told The Times of India. We'll seek the court's permission to proceed further once we've preliminary report, he said. The report is expected to be ready by Monday.

Sources said the cops have expertise to probe the case as it requires involvement of forensic experts. The police can take the assistance of the forensic experts easily unlike the foresters, they stated. As it is an attempt to poach the tiger, criminal intent is to be investigated, which the cops can effectively probe, they argued. Going by the nature of the injury, the experts had suggested that the tiger was shot at from close range.

A team of forensic experts visited the Mysuru Zoo, where the tiger is housed and looked at the medical reports. Sources said the forensic team has said the tiger is shot at from fire arm.

Meanwhile, the injured tiger, which is lodged at the zoo hospital, will be examined by experts before the zoo authorities take a call on amputation of its right limb, which is badly injured. A senior official said the experts are likely to decide on the surgical intervention on Saturday.

However, the tiger will not be lucky enough to be either released back into the woods or to be displayed at the zoos. The DCF ruled out chances of the tiger making it to band of big cats housed at the conservation centre. If it is spared of amputation, it is not likely to recover fully. We'll have to move it to rehab centres, he said.