Woman fights off leopard to save daughter in Bahraich

Lucknow: Panic gripped villages along the Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary after a leopard entered a house in Kakaraha village in UP’s Bahraich district and tried to drag away a seven-year-old girl, as she slept inside a mosquito net.

The attack took place around 3am on Saturday. Villagers said the leopard entered the house of Chunna and attacked his daughter, Shahiba, who was sleeping on a cot next to her mother. The feline seized the child in its jaws and tried to drag her away.

Hearing Shahiba’s screams, her mother woke up and tried to stop the leopard. Her cries drew in family members and nearby villagers, who rushed to the house. As people gathered and shouted, the leopard left the child and fled towards the nearby forest.

Shahiba suffered injuries to her head, stomach, and other parts of her body. The family took her to the community health centre in Mihipurwa and later to Bahraich Medical College for advanced treatment.

The incident heightened fear in villages bordering the sanctuary, where leopard sightings have been reported in recent months.

Apoorva Dixit, DFO, said two forest department teams were sent to the village and surveillance has been intensified to monitor leopard movement in the area.