A viral video on social media platform Tiktok showing the abuse of an African male lion has led to rapid action from the Punjab Wildlife Department. Officials have seized the lion while the suspect remains largely.
In the widely circulated video, a young man identified as Muhammad Usman, son of Muhammad Shahid, can be illegally seen to keep and harass an African male lion in an urban area.
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Punjab Wildlife Rangers in Gujranwala, under instructions from Chief Wildlife Ranger, performed a RAID in collaboration with the local police from Sadar police station, Gujranwala.
According to Vice Manager Wildlife Ranger Gujranwala, Sheikh Muhammad Zahid, the suspect succeeded in fleeing by interfering with a number of spectators during the operation. However, the authorities successfully took an adult African male lion in custody.
The Punjab Wildlife Department has registered a case against Muhammad Usman according to relevant sections of the Wildlife Act from 1974 and sections 186 and 506 in the Pakistan Poor Code. In pending the result of the case, the confiscated lion is transferred to the Adil Wildlife Breeding Farm.
Officials in the Wildlife Department emphasized that illegal to keep wildlife and expose animals to harassment in urban settings are intolerable. They repeated their obligation to continue strict enforcement measures against such violations.
The latest confiscation followed a previous incident in Gujranwala, where two African lions were taken into custody after a Tiktok video became viral that showed those who were paraded through a residential neighborhood with automatic firearms.
In the footage, a man was identified as Luqman – known online as “Loha” – seen a tied lion in the Batala Sharam Singh area, which raised concern for both public security and animal welfare.
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In response to the incident, Deputy CEO Wildlife Rangers Gujranwala -Region Sheikh Zahid Iqbal had ordered immediate action. A team led by senior wild animals ranger Muhammad Umair is traced to the lions to a private farm where they were held without legal permits or documentation according to the Punjab Wildlife Act.
Wildlife officials confirmed that no valid registration had been submitted for the animals, which led to their removal of the authorities.
