Overview
- The court directed the state government, the NTCA and the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve field director to file detailed reports by February 25, including status updates on deaths deemed unnatural and steps taken toward prosecution.
- NTCA data show 27 tiger deaths nationwide between January 1 and February 8, with 10 in Madhya Pradesh and four inside Bandhavgarh on January 7, 8, 16 and 20, plus two found dead on February 2 in Shahdol near the reserve.
- The petition notes 54 tiger deaths in Madhya Pradesh in 2025, reported as the highest in a single year since Project Tiger began, and alleges organised poaching and electrocution as key causes.
- The filing also cites investigative lapses such as mutilated or old carcasses, missing body parts and deviations from mandated SOPs for wildlife death inquiries.
- The forest department counters that most recent deaths appear accidental or territorial, says forensic investigations are ongoing, and points to a Special Investigation Team formed on January 19 to probe cases around Bandhavgarh.