A father in Bijnor fought a tiger with a stick to save his son from an attack. The tiger retreated after a five-minute struggle and fled into the forest.
A father confronted a tiger to save his son in Bijnor. The son had gone towards the forest to graze cattle when the tiger attacked him. The father reached the spot with a stick, hearing the screams.
He started beating the tiger with the stick. The tiger tried to scare the father by growling, but he did not step back. Finally, the tiger retreated and ran away into the forest.
Son suffered serious injuries to shoulder and hand in the tiger attack
The son, identified as Rafi (33), lives with his family in a makeshift shelter in the Mothla alias Neem Wali forest area. He had gone to graze cows and buffaloes when a tiger attacked him.
Rafi screamed loudly. His father, Gulam Nabi (65), came running from their shelter 250 meters away. He saw the tiger had caught his son and started beating it with a stick, but the tiger did not let go.
Gulam Nabi kept raining blows on the tiger. The tiger growled several times, but the father did not retreat. The struggle continued for about five minutes. Finally, the tiger got scared and fled towards the forest.
Rafi suffered serious injuries to his shoulder, hand, and waist. The tiger had clawed him. Villagers informed village head Harvinder Kaur’s husband Narvel Singh, who sent Rafi to the CHC. After primary treatment, doctors sent him home.
Rafi said, “If my father had not been there, my life would not have been saved. He fought the tiger for about five minutes; only then did the tiger flee.”
Regional Forest Officer Vikas Kumar and Forest Guard Mohit Kumar reached the spot and advised villagers to remain alert. Forest Officer Mohit Kumar said Van Gujjars live in the forest and have been told not to stay there. He said it is impossible to set up a cage there.