The body of the leopard after it was brought to the office of the wildlife squad in Malbazar. Picture by Biplab Basak

Siliguri, Aug. 12: A six-year-old male leopard suspected to have been hit by a speeding night train was found dead on the railway tracks in the Dooars early this morning. The railways have denied that the animal died of collision.

Around 3.15am, before the Guwahati-bound Sampark Kranti Express was to pass, railwaymen on patrol noticed the carcass between pillars 58/6 and 58/7 close to Soongachi Tea Estate on the outskirts of Malbazar town, 52km from here. The express was detained at New Mal station for 45 minutes during which the body was removed.

“It was hit by a night train and died on the spot,” Tapas Das, the divisional forest officer (wildlife-II), said. The body had injury marks on one of the hind legs, skull, ears and tail. Unlike the elephant that was hit by the Jhajha-bound Guwahati Jhajha Express on the same track near Gulma station on July 21, the leopard’s body was not mutilated. Last year, another elephant had died in a similar manner at Gulma on July 25.

Although the number of big cats killed on tracks is fewer than that of elephants, the figure is on the rise. On June 18 last year, a seven-year-old Royal Bengal Tiger, suspected to have come out from the Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary located 16km away, was found dead close to the railway tracks at Baro Solmari village in Cooch Behar. Railway authorities at that time had vehemently denied that the animal had been hit by a train and had insisted that poachers had a hand in the death.

Today, the railways hinted at revenge killing. “The body would have had more injury marks, if the leopard had been hit by a train,” said Partha Sarathi Mondal, the additional divisional manager of the Northeast Frontier Railways at Alipurduar. “We rule out chances of collision and suspect that with a tea garden nearby, somebody might have killed the animal when it strayed into human habitation to feed on cattle or chickens and put it on the tracks.”

Railway officials argued that leopards have strong reflexes and hardly come near the tracks and even if they do, they swiftly jump out of the way whenever they perceive the movement of a train.

Wildlife experts, however, are not ready to buy the theory. “The railways’ argument does not hold much water. Anyone who wants to hide the body can dump it in the forests or the water bodies. Only a post-mortem will be able to tell us the cause of death,” said Animesh Bose, the programme coordinator of the Siliguri-based Himalayan Nature and Adventure Foundation.

Sujit Das, secretary of the Odlabari Nature and Adventure Society, said the rise in the number of animal deaths on tracks reveal a lack of coordination between the forest department and the railways.

The post-mortem was conducted at Gorumara National Park, 15km from Malbazar.