A team of forest officials visited the home of Karnataka Minister of Women and Child Development Lakshmi Hebbalkar to check if Mrinal Hebbalkar, her son, has been wearing tiger claw pendants.
Mrinal Hebbalkar handed over the pendant in question to the officers. Shankar Kallolikar, deputy conservator of forests, said that the pendant was being sent to the forensic science laboratory to confirm if it came from a real tiger.
Ms. Hebbalkar, however, denied that her son had ever worn a tiger claw. “It is a plastic pendant. He does not wear real claws. We are vegetarians. We do not like any animal being killed either for sport or culling or for jewellery,’‘ she told journalists.
Meanwhile, pictures of Sumit Savadi, son of Laxman Savadi, MLA and former deputy CM, wearing a tiger claw pendant were distributed on social media. A team will visit the house of the leader in Athani, said forest officials.
A senior forest officer said that the law was very clear that wearing such things was an offence. “The spirit of the law is that if a market for such things is created, then poachers will be forced to kill wild animals to increase the supply. Hence, even wearing plastic claws is wrong,’‘ said a forest officer.
