Shivpuri (Madhya Pradesh): A ranger locked up two men and a ten-year-old boy for one and a half hours for entering the Shivpuri National Park without permission, official sources said on Saturday.
One of the men Thakurdas Shakya was the father of the boy. The ranger Pinky Raghuwanshi freed them only after they had paid Rs 500 as fine, sources said.
Thakurdas said that Raghuwanshi had kept him and his son in the lockup for two and a half hours, but as the media persons reached the spot, she freed them.
Thakurdas, with his son and an acquaintance Neeraj Singh Sisodia, entered the national park to collect the branches of Apamarg (chaff-flower plant).
The branches of Apamarg are used to perform Pooja on the occasion of Rishi Panchami which fell on Saturday this year.
They entered the park through Bhedia Kund side, sources said.
As they neared boundary of the park, they saw Raghuwanshi standing there with her driver.
They, however, did not say anything to the trio. But no sooner had they tried to intrude into the park than Raghuwanshi and her driver caught hold of the trio including the child.
She took them to the forest police station and put them inside the lockup.
The screams of the child, however, fell on deaf ears of the ranger, Thakurdas said, adding that as the media persons reached the spot, she released the trio.
Caught them for illegal entry into park: Ranger
Ranger Pinky Raghuwanshi said that the case had been related to illegal entry into the forest.
She also said that she did not keep the child, but only his father Thakurdas and Neeraj, inside the lockup.
The guardian of the child, the elder brother of Thakurdas, had been informed about the incident over phone and requested to take the child to home.
Entry into the national park is banned, she said, adding that this is the reason why those people were caught.
An official of Child Protection Committee Raghvendra Sharma said that asking a child to sit in the police station is wrong.
The officials concerned should have kept the child in family atmosphere, he said, adding that, the Juvenile Justice Act does not permit what the ranger had done in this case.
