All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Digvijay Singh on Tuesday (August 18) came to the rescue of Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Balasaheb Thorat who is facing a controversy over his entry into the tiger cage at a local zoo, saying the Minister has not violated the Wild Life Proction Act as alleged.
Armed with a booklet of Wild Life Proction Act, Singh, who was talking to media at Devadia Congress Bhawan, read out the provisions of the Act one by one and said nowhere the Minister, who is also Gaurdian Minister of Nagpur district, has violated the act.
"Patting is not a violation, he did force his entry into the cage, it was due to requests of the zoo caretaker who insisted that Thorat should enter the cage with an assurance that the full grown tiger cub was not harmful." Digvijay Singh said.
Thorat is innocent and unnecessarily dragged into the controversy, he said.
Meanwhile, according to sources close to Thorat, he has expressed his innocence over the whole issue. "I was not aware of Wild Life Protection Act. Conservator of Forests Dr Rambaboo has sought explanation from the Zoo Controller.
Thorat maintained innocence and said that he has not teased the animal. As Vice-Chancellor of the Punjabrao Deshmukh Agriculture University's College of Agriculuture which houses the zoo, I had gone to visit the College which is part of my job," Thorat said.
According to reports, Maharashtra Forest Minister Babanrao Pachpute has also defended his ministerial colleague. "He has not done anything wrong and there was no violation of Act," Pachpute has been quoted as saying.
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