A leopard was tranquillised and captured after it strayed into a raw silk godown at Bellikothanur on the outskirts of Kanakapura town on Friday night. A labourer Dodda Thimmaiah, who was inside the godown, was injured in the attack.
Dodda Thimmaiah was asleep around midnight when the leopard sneaked into the godown. When Thimmaiah panicked on seeing the feline, it pounced on him.
Jagadish, a silk farmer who owns the godown, managed to intervene, pull Thimmaiah out and lock the leopard in the room. The injured labourer was admitted to the hospital. He had gashes on his torso and bite marks near his ears. The police said he was recovering in a nearby government hospital.
Bystander hurt
As news of the locked leopard spread, a large crowd of villagers gathered at the spot making it difficult for the police to disperse the crowd. A bystander Kiran, who was standing close to the window and peeked inside to get a better view of the feline, was also injured when the leopard attacked him.
On Saturday morning, forest officials and veterinarians from Bannerghatta National Park tranquillised the big cat by shooting a dart through the window. It was taken for observation to Channapatna from where it may be released into the forest nearby.
