Rajpipla: During repair work at an old building of the famed Dharmeshwar Mahadev Temple near Rajpipla, a massive stock of suspected tiger skins and claws was found stored inside a room on the temple premises.

The matter came to light when trustees noticed a strong foul smell emanating from the dilapidated structure that was undergoing repairs and alerted the Forest Department. A team led by Rajpipla Range Forest Officer (RFO) Jignesh Soni rushed to the spot and recovered a box containing animal skins and claws from one of the rooms.

Forest officials said the seized material includes 37 full tiger skins and four skin fragments, taking the total to over 40 skins, along with as many as 133 tiger claws. Considering the seriousness of the case, the seized items have been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for confirmation. Notably, the recovery is believed to be the first case in Gujarat involving such a large number of tiger remains.

Preliminary findings suggest the skins are more than 35 years old. The materials were wrapped in old newspapers dated 1992 and 1993, indicating that the box had remained stored for decades.

The room from which the box was recovered reportedly belonged to the temple’s priest, who passed away around three months ago. Temple trustee Prakash Vyas said the priest was originally from Madhya Pradesh and that other sadhus frequently visited and occasionally stayed overnight at the temple. He added that it is now under investigation who brought the box onto the temple premises and for what purpose.

RFO Jignesh Soni said a case has been registered against unknown persons under the Wildlife Protection Act and the state government has been informed. He added that if the FSL confirms the skins to be those of a tiger, a detailed probe will be launched to identify all individuals connected to the deceased priest, and strict legal action will be initiated against those found responsible. DeshGujarat