Bengaluru, Oct 14 — The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday issued notices to the state government, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and other concerned authorities on a petition seeking the return of an African Grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus) taken into custody by the CID's Mobile Forest Squad.
A bench headed by Justice C.M. Poonacha issued the notices while hearing a petition filed by R. Mahesh Kumar, a resident of Rajajinagar in Bengaluru, who sought directions to return the parrot he had been nursing at his residence.
In his petition, Mahesh Kumar stated that he was a bird lover and that one of his friends had given him an injured African Grey parrot in 2018. As the bird was unable to fly due to a dysfunctional wing, he treated it and took care of it out of compassion, providing it with affection and attention.
He further stated that officials of the CID's Mobile Forest Squad took the bird into their custody from his residence on July 27. Subsequently, on July 31, they issued a notice directing him to cooperate with the investigation and produce the necessary documents.
According to the petitioner, the officials warned that failure to comply with the notice would result in a case being registered under Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Mahesh Kumar contended that he had neither purchased the bird nor kept it for commercial purposes. He maintained that he had only provided shelter and treatment to an injured bird.
The petitioner sought the quashing of the notice issued by the CID and a direction to return the parrot to his custody.
The court also issued notices to the Chief Secretary of the Karnataka government, the Principal Secretary of the Forest Department and the CID's Mobile Forest Squad. It also directed the public prosecutor to obtain the necessary information from the respondents and submit it to the court.
The High Court adjourned the matter to November 3.