Three people who went on a picnic in Madhya Pradesh's Shahdol district were injured after being attacked by a leopard near the jungle on the evening of Sunday, October 20. Two of the victims, including a woman and an off-duty police officer, sustained serious head injuries.
According to a report by The Times of India, the incident occurred in the Khitauli forest area near the Sohagpur riverside village, around 150 km from Jabalpur. A dramatic video of the attack, believed to have been recorded by one of the picnickers, went viral on social media.
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The 30-second viral clip shows the leopard charging toward a group of about 50 picnickers, while they were yelling "aa jaa, aa jaa" at the big cat after spotting it in the bushes. Suddenly, their laughter turned to screams of horror as they realized the leopard was actually approaching them in response to their call.
Leopard Goes After Youth Picnicking With Friends in MP’s Shahdol
In the video, the leopard can be seen attacking a man, mauling him, and then charging at another person before the clip cuts off. The three people reportedly injured in the attack are Nitin Samdariya (35), an ASI with Shahdol police, Akash Kushwaha (23), and Nandini Singh (25). Others also sustained minor injuries while running in panic, some falling to the ground amid the chaos.
"The woman suffered severe injuries as the leopard dug its claws into her head," Bhupendra Mani Pandey, the officer in charge of Sohagpur police station, told The Times of India.