Gujarat : Tiger skins found inside temple, biggest wildlife shock in decades

Narmada | Gujarat — In a discovery that has stunned Gujarat and raised serious questions about wildlife protection and institutional oversight, a massive cache of tiger skins and claws was recovered from the old building of the Dharmeshwar Mahadev temple near Rajpipla city in Narmada district. Officials believe this may be the largest single seizure of tiger remains ever reported in the state, triggering shockwaves across religious, administrative and conservation circles.

The startling recovery came to light when renovation work was underway in the dilapidated old temple structure. According to temple trustees, a strong, foul smell emanating from a locked room raised suspicion, prompting them to alert the Forest Department. Acting swiftly, a team led by Rajpipla Range Forest Officer (RFO) Jignesh Soni reached the spot and conducted a search.

What followed left officials stunned.

“A large box was recovered from one of the rooms, and upon opening it, we found 37 whole tiger skins, four pieces of skin and 133 tiger claws,” said RFO Jignesh Soni. “All the items appear to belong to the endangered tiger species and have been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for confirmation.”

Preliminary investigation suggests the seized skins are over 35 years old. Officials found that the skins were wrapped in newspapers dated 1992 and 1993, strengthening the theory that the cache had been hidden decades ago.

The room from which the tiger remains were recovered belonged to the temple priest (Maharaj), who passed away just three months ago. Temple trustee Prakash Vyas confirmed that the priest was originally from Madhya Pradesh and that several sadhus from outside Gujarat frequently visited and stayed overnight at the temple premises.

“This room was used by the Maharaj. There was a regular movement of visiting sadhus. At this stage, it is unclear who brought these items here and when,” Vyas said, adding that the trust had no prior knowledge of the illegal cache.

Forest officials have registered a case against an unknown person under Section 172 of the Wildlife Protection Act and have formally informed senior government authorities. “If the FSL confirms that the skins are indeed of tigers, a deeper investigation will be launched to identify all individuals linked to the deceased Maharaj,” RFO Soni said. “Strict legal action will follow.”

The incident has raised disturbing questions about how such a large quantity of banned wildlife material remained hidden for decades within a temple complex without detection. Conservationists argue that the case exposes gaps in wildlife crime monitoring and calls for a broader probe into historical poaching networks.

Environmental activists have urged the state government to treat the Rajpipla seizure as a turning point, calling for stricter monitoring, accountability, and swift prosecution to ensure that crimes against endangered species are neither forgotten nor forgiven, regardless of when they were committed.